Jesuit Missions repeats call to clear Indian priest's name

Source: Jesuit Missions

Jesuit Missions has once again written to the Indian High Commission as part of its campaign to clear the name of the late human rights' advocate and Jesuit priest Fr Stan Swamy.

Br Stephen Power SJ, Chairman of Jesuit Missions' Management Board, sent a letter to Vikram Doraiswami, High Commissioner of India to the UK, yesterday (July 2) requesting a meeting to discuss the subject of Fr Stan's imprisonment and death.

Fr Stan - alongside 15 other human rights' defenders - was arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in 2020, having been accused of inciting caste-based violence in Bhima Koregaon and neighbouring villages in Maharashtra state, India, some years earlier.

He died in custody aged 84 on 5 July 2021, suffering from Parkinson's disease and having contracted Covid-19.

In his letter, Br Stephen noted: "Jesuits around the world are eager to clear Fr Stan's name and achieve the liberty of others still wrongly imprisoned."

Jesuit Missions has engaged in a long-running campaign to secure justice for Fr Stan, demonstrating against his jailing and, following his death, urging the High Commission to absolve him on two further occasions in 2021 and 2023.

It is hosting an event at the London Jesuit Centre on Monday (July 8) that looks at Fr Stan's story.

Professor Alpa Shah from the London School of Economics will give a talk on her latest book, The Incarcerations: BK-16 and the Search for Democracy in India, which examines the cases of those unfairly accused of working against the Indian state.

It follows a 6pm Mass at Farm Street Church, which will be offered to Fr Stan's memory.

Jesuit Missions is the international mission and development organisation of the Jesuits in Britain. For more than 60 years, it has supported vulnerable communities in the Global South. It engages in projects in 15 countries and regularly works with schools and parishes in the UK.

The BK-16: Stan Swamy, Sudha Bharadwaj, Arun Ferreira, Surendra Gadling, Mahesh Raut, Shoma Sen, Rona Wilson, Sudhir Dhawale, Vernon Gonsalves, Varavara Rao, Gautam Navlakha, Anand Teltumbde, Hany Babu, Sagar Tatyarao Gorakhe, Ramesh Murlidhar Gaichor, Jyoti Raghoba Jagtab.

For details of the 8 July event visit:
www.eventbrite.com/e/the-search-for-democracy-in-india-tickets-927736182897