Implement Malankara Church Bill: Kerala’s Jacobite faction tells govt

The Jacobite Syrian Christian Church has urged the government to implement the Malankara Church Bill in order to end its centuries-old dispute with the Orthodox faction.

In a letter sent to a committee headed by the Chief Secretary, Joseph Mar Gregorios, metropolitan trustee of the Jacobite Syrian Church, pointed out that the enactment of the Bill will help in finding a permanent solution to the dispute.

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The dispute

The differences between the warring factions had escalated after the Supreme Court ruled in favour of the Orthodox faction on a dispute with the rival Jacobite faction over control of over 1,100 churches in 2017.

The Metropolitan Trustee alleged that the Orthodox faction is misleading the government and courts by including devotees from outside the parishes under 56 churches in which it had gained control after the apex court’s verdict to claim its majority. He accused the Orthodox faction, which remained a minority, for having expelled the majority of the members belonging to the Jacobite faction from the churches. This was done in violation of the Supreme Court’s verdict that ruled against the expulsion of parish members, he said.

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The Jacobite Syrian Church alleged that the Orthodox faction had placed the assets under various churches in its control, besides cutting down the trees in Chathamattom, Mannathoor, Vadakara, Kanyattunirappu and Moolakulam churches for sale, though it had no rights over such measures. It also claimed that the Orthodox faction is replacing the Jacobite name plates and emblems in various churches.