Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
New Delhi (Agenzia Fides) – “There is a ray of hope for the security and future of religious minorities in India”: says the Justice, Peace and Development Commission of the Conference of the Catholic Bishops of India commenting, in a statement sent to Fides, a recent article by jurist Fali Sam Nariman. Illustrious lawyer, constitutional jurist and senior advocate to the Supreme Court, Nariman published a paper with the title “Minorities at the Crossroads” – Fides learned from Fr. Charles Irudayam, secretary of the mentioned Bishops’ Commission - “ which has nurtured new hope in the hearts of minority communities in India”.
Recalling historic cases when minorities were subjected to repression, hostility, or attempted assimilation, Nariman lauded India’s Constitution for having consciously adopted protection and guardianship as the only sustainable path for the presence of minorities, and to guarantee their rights and freedoms. Nariman speaks of “crossroads”, noting the present situation and the failure to adopt effective measures to protect minorities from the social, political and juridical viewpoint.
“The effort to reaffirm the sacred obligation to safeguard the constitutional rights and freedoms of minorities is laudable. It is important to define precisely that in a democratic nation the majority may not have the power to destroy or undermine the religious, cultural or linguistic rights of minorities” the Commission affirms. If this juridical culture makes headway in India, concludes fr. Irudayam – and this is the hope of the Catholic Church– then there is truly a ray of hope for India’s democracy. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 16/9/2014)
