Government Cannot Plead Helplessness: Kerala High Court Slams State Over Inaction In Orthodox-Jacobite Row

Considering the number of pending cases seeking protection involving churches belonging to the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church, the Kerala High Court has sought the response of the State in the matter. The Court also found that the premise of matters arising from the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church row was well settled in the landmark decision of the Apex Court in K.S Varghese & Ors v St. Peter's & St. Paul's Syrian Orthodox and Ors [2017(3) KLT 261 SC], particularly because attempts to seek a review of this decision before the Supreme Court had failed. The Court further slammed the inaction of the State for failing to comply with the orders issued by the judiciary. Justice Devan Ramachandran while adjourning the case, observed: "There can be no doubt that issues between the rival parties are still dangerously poised and therefore before I take a final decision on the prayers in these cases, I am certain that the Government must disclose their stand in the matter." The Bench established that such response was significant considering that the machinery under the State was what was required to order protection as prayed for in these petitions.Additional Advocate General Asok M Cherian however submitted that although the State was ready to comply with the said directions, it was finding it difficult to do so on account of the fear of breach of peace and threat of violence. To this, the Bench responded as such:"I am afraid that the Government cannot plead helplessness when they have the mechanism and systems to ensure compliance fo lawful order, through means of law." The matter has therefore been adjourned to 29th September for further consideration. The State has been directed to inform its stand and the action proposed to be taken to ensure compliance with the directions issued in the KS Varghese case before the Court. This development ensued in a petition seeking the takeover of six Orthodox churches by the Orthodox faction, presently under the control of the Jacobite faction.The court pointed out that the apex court in its final verdict in 2017, gave the Orthodox faction the right to administer 1,100 churches and parishes under the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church and said there was no ground for the Jacobites to claim any of the churches.The helplessness of the government under the pretext of issues surfacing if the order is implemented and its silence is frightening as the onus is on the government to implement the orders of the judiciary.A non-Catholic Christian community in Kerala, the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, has two factions – the majority Orthodox, who have their headquarters in Kottayam, and the Jacobites, who consider the Patriarch of Antioch in Beirut as their supreme leader.The community first split into Orthodox and Jacobite in 1912, but came together in Kottayam for a brief period between 1958 and 1970, following a Supreme Court ruling. Since 1970, they have been at war over church control.After decades spent in the trial, the apex court in its final verdict in 2017, gave the Orthodox faction the right to administer 1,100 churches and parishes under the Malankara Church and said there was no ground for the Jacobites to claim any of the churches.Consequent to this, the Orthodox faction has been taking control over churches hitherto run by the Jacobite faction.While by now the Orthodox faction has taken over a few Churches with directions from the Court after the police was given specific instructions, in some the Jacobite faction is unrelenting.Key Findings In the KS Varghese CaseMalankara Church is Episcopal in character to the extent it is so declared in the 1934 Constitution. The 1934 Constitution fully governs the affairs of the parish churches and shall prevail.The decision in Most. Rev. P.M.A. Metropolitan v. Moran Mar Marthoma 1995 Supp (4) 286 arising out of the representative suit is binding and operates as res judicata with respect to the matters it has decided, in the wake of the provisions of Order 1 Rule 8 and Explanation 6 to Section 11 CPC. The same binds not only the parties named in the suit but all those who have interest in the Malankara Church. Findings in earlier representative suit i.e. Samudayam suit are also binding on parish churches/parishioners to the extent issues have been decided.As the 1934 Constitution is valid and binding upon the parish churches, it is not open to any individual Church, to decide to have their new Constitution like that of 2002 in the so-called exercise of right under Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution of India. It is also not permissible to create a parallel system of management in the Churches under the guise of spiritual supremacy of the Patriarch. The Primate of Orthodox Syrian Church of the East is Catholicos. He enjoys spiritual powers as well, as the Malankara Metropolitan. Malankara Metropolitan has the prime jurisdiction regarding temporal, ecclesiastical and spiritual administration of Malankara Church subject to the...

Government Cannot Plead Helplessness: Kerala High Court Slams State Over Inaction In Orthodox-Jacobite Row

Hannah M Varghese

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