An indefinite hunger strike by parishioners of Vishwanatha Nagenahalli over the now shut St. Paul the Hermit Church entered the fourth day on Wednesday. Of the thirteen parishioners, who started off the hunger strike on Sunday, six – all women - have already been hospitalised and two more are being treated at the church compound itself.
Margaret Mary (32), Nirmala Rani (35), Chinnamma (45), Rejina Mary (40), Anthony Mary (40) and Shilpa J. (21) have been hospitalised, even as Lurduswamy A. (38), Anthony Raj A. (46), Balaraj (36), Joseph K. Ravi (42), Stella P. (37), Joseph B. (43) and Ranjitha (19) are continuing the hunger strike.
The church was closed down by Archbishop Bernard Moras by an order on April 21, 2016, over the dispute about the bust of the recently deceased Fr. Chasara established by the parishioners in the church compound. He had cited the Code of Canon Law that stated that no statue of any person, who is not duly beatified or canonised, can be installed.
The parishioners had held Sunday mass in front of the closed church two weeks ago. The stalemate continues with neither the Archbishop nor the parishioners budging over the issue of the bust.
Though Fr. Chasara, a Kannada priest though was charge sheeted for his alleged role in the conspiracy in the 2013 murder of Rector K.J. Thomas, the High Court has stayed the charge sheet. Fr. Chasara was the one who rebuilt the St. Paul the Hermit Church in 1992 and the parishioners have an emotional connect with the deceased priest.
A visibly weak Mr. Lurduswamy told The Hindu that they will not discontinue the fast till the Archbishop opens the church again. “I still remember Fr Chasara coming to our house everyday and encouraging me and other kids of my generation to study in the early 1990s. But for him, we would have never studied,” he recounted, adding that it was their right to pay their respects to Fr. Chasara after his death and the Archbishop couldn’t deny them that.
Anthony Swamy, another parishioner, charged that the Archbishop was behaving in a feudal manner. “Since Fr. Chasara did not want the Archbishop to lead his funeral prayer and bless him due to a personal dispute, he is now targeting those of us who love Fr. Chasara,” he alleged, pointing out the statues of other priests had been installed in various churches across the city, who are neither beatified or canonised.
Those protesting are also agitated that neither the Archbishop nor any representative from the Archdiocese of Bangalore has visited them and tried to end the stalemate.
Meanwhile, human rights advocate B.T. Venkatesh is all set to file a writ petition in the High Court on behalf of the parishioners on the grounds that the Archbishop had effectively denied Freedom to Religion, a fundamental right in the Indian Constitution, by closing down the church.
Even after repeated attempts, Archbishop Bernard Moras was not available for comment.
