Rebels slay priest
Church leaders refused extortion demands

Father Shajan Jacob Chittilappilly was shot and killed by insurgents in the Manipur state of northeastern India on December 2.

Father Chittilappilly—who volunteered to serve in the troubled state soon after his ordination last April in the southern Kerala state—was kidnapped along with his driver by gunmen. After driving to a desolate place, the gunmen told the priest and his driver to lie down on the ground and the priest was shot in the head. The driver, who fell unconscious on the priest after being shot himself, survived and reported the murder to the Church authorities.

The Indian bishops’ conference pointed out that insurgent groups had served extortion notices on several Catholic schools in the region in July. The bishops’ statement went on to say that the Church had decided “not to yield to the extortion demands.” The bishops added: “The irony of the matter is that while some fundamentalists blame the Church for being involved in insurgency in the northeast, it is at the hands of the insurgents that Church personnel are being killed and attacked.” Two years ago, another Catholic priest, Father N. V. Jose, was also shot dead in the troubled northeast region in similar circumstances; several attacks on Church institutions have been reported recently.

Christians object to divorce law
Government promises consultations

Following strong Christian criticism of the federal government’s plan to amend the Indian Divorce Act as it applies to Christians “without consulting” them, India’s law minister has conceded to the Christian demand.

Arun Jaitely, federal law minister, assured a Christian delegation led by Archbishop Vincent Concessao of Delhi that he would hold detailed discussion with Church leaders on the proposed amendments, which are designed to end the discriminatory provisions against women in the divorce laws enacted in 1869.

The meeting with the federal minister came a day after Archbishop Concessao, the first vice president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI), was installed as the new Archbishop of Delhi. The transfer of Archbishop Concessao from Agra to New Delhi followed the tragic death of Archbishop Alan Basil de Lastic of Delhi in a car accident in Poland in June.

Cleared of murder charges
Suspicion had endured for 34 years

A Catholic priest of the Chenganacherry archdiocese in southern Kerala state, who has lived with the reputation of being a murderer for 34 years, was finally vindicated in November when Deepika, a leading daily newspaper in Kerala, revealed that the murder was committed by someone else.

Father Benedict Onamkulam was sentenced to death in 1966 for the murder of a widow, on the basis of circumstantial evidence. However the Kerala high court acquitted the priest for lack of evidence. Nevertheless the widespread belief that he was a killer forced Father Onamkulam to serve in a remote mission parish, far from his accusers, while popular movies were made based on the story of the priest’s alleged murder.

The true story of the killing is itself tinged with melodrama. The murder victim, a poor woman, had been pressured by a wealthy lover to undergo an abortion after she became pregnant as a result of their affair. Complications arose during the (illegal) abortion, and the woman died. The doctor and the woman’s lover then conspired to eliminate the woman’s body and plant evidence to implicate the priest.

These lurid details became public after the family of the doctor who had performed the abortion attended a spiritual retreat led by a charismatic minister. (The doctor himself has died, and his identity was not revealed.) The preacher convinced the family members to confess the crime and ask for forgiveness from Father Onamkulam.

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