Holding that the Ordinance promulgated by the State government on the burial rituals of church members will lead to anarchy in cemeteries, the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church has announced its plans to approach the Supreme Court against the move.
Addressing a press conference here on Thursday, Orthodox Church leaders maintained that the Ordinance would have far-reaching implications as far as the various church denominations of Kerala were concerned.
“The Ordinance, which appears to be vague in its definition of clauses, will affect all churches. It is unfortunate that the administrators are trying to sabotage the judicial system through an Ordinance for their political gains,” said synod secretary Yuhanon Mar Diascoros. For instance, the first clause says a parishioner is qualified to be buried in the cemetery of the church where his ancestors have been buried. However, no definition has been given as to who is an ancestor. It has also not been clearly said who is the authority to establish that. one This Ordinance is a secret ploy to circumvent the order of the Supreme Court in the Chuch case, he said.
