India’s Supreme Court has restored the powers of Catholic bishops in Kerala to transfer diocesan properties and quashed a state court’s order that restricted them to dealing only with spiritual matters.
“The Supreme Court order setting aside the high court observations is a matter of great relief to bishops and the entire Christian community in the state [Kerala],” said Father Jacob G Palakkappillly, spokesperson of the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council, a regional Indian Bi-shops’ Conference.
The Supreme Court on March 17 said the state High Court’s order was “unwarranted and de-serve to be quashed and set aside, and are accordingly quashed and set aside.”
Kerala High Court in August 2021 held that Catholic bishops, notwithstanding their canonical powers, had no powers to alienate landed assets of their dioceses because their “powers are con-fined to religious and spiritual matters.”