Christians Appeal for Release of Jesuit Missionary in India

In Mumbai, western India, Christian leaders have cried out for the release of a Christian Jesuit that has been jailed based on the false accusations of a woman who claimed that he tried to convert and then have sex with her.

Christians across the Gujarat state have called on the local government to intervene and force the immediate release of Fr Prasad Gonsalves, whom they say has only been arrested as he is a missionary.

On 7th March Gonsalves was taken to jail after the World Hindu Council or Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) convinced Shanteben Gulabbhai to press charges against him.

Two months before, Ms Gulabbhai had asked Gonsalves to help her find a place to live. However, due to the long-distance from where Gonsalves was running a housing project for the poor, and the place where she wanted him to help search, the missionary refused.

After the rejection, the woman went to the police to accuse Gonsalves of certain offences, but Ms Gulabbhai later changed her mind and admitted that she was simply taking revenge on the missionary. Passionately, Gonsalves reportedly then agreed to help the woman.

However, on March 5th a Hindu newspaper in the city of Patan ran the story and repeated the accusations. This led to Hindu groups applying great pressure on the Indian authorities and eventually to Gonsalves’ summons to court.

Ms Gulabbhai’s credibility as a witness has been called into serious doubt however, by her previous actions and also a written statement by her own brother who said that over the years she has acquired the reputation of being an extortionist, literally terrorising her neighbours.

Christian groups and church leaders have strongly rebutted the accusations against Gonsalves. The vice-president of the All India Catholic Church, Dolphy D’Souza criticised the arrest of the missionary, and said that he believed that he was only arrested because he is "a missionary doing good for the people."

D’Souza went on and has requested that the Gurajat government immediately release Gonsalves, and punish all those who persecute minorities in the region.

Father Cedric Prakash, the Director of Prahant, a human rights, justice and peace centre, condemned the fundamentalists that have resorted "to using criminals to slander the Church."

[Source: Asianews.it]