Nirmala Carvalho

Today Sunni militias released the women, who will return to India tomorrow. They were moved from Tikrit to Mosul and then to Erbil, where they will take a special flight. They had been trapped in Iraq since the beginning of June.

Bishop Savio Fernandes, the Archdiocese of Mumbai, comments to AsiaNews on statements made by a member of the West Bengal parliament. The politician has called for murder of his political opponents and rape their wives. The prelate says these words are "mirror of a distorted and wrong mentality, which encourages the people of our country to treat women as objects and second-class citizens".

In various Indian dioceses, special Masses were celebrated for the liturgical memorial of the founder of Opus Dei. In Mumbai, Auxiliary Bishop Mgr Agnelo Gracias said that "in the Church there are no first- or second-class citizens. With regards to holiness, we are all equal."

The Bastar District Council (Gram Sabha), which represents more than 35 villages, rules against non-Hindus. For the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), this will "sow suspicion and distrust in the community." Chhattisgarh "is becoming a cauldron for hate mongering against non-Hindus."

Interviewed by AsiaNews, Mgr Thomas Dabre, a member of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, expressed concerns vis-à-vis a proposed civil code from the new Hindu nationalist government. Abolishing separate personal laws for different religious communities is "a sensitive issue that should be handed only through dialogue, not force."

Hindu fundamentalists carry out attacks in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. "These radical groups claim to be defenders of Hinduism just because they practice the majority religion," Global Council of Indian Christians tells AsiaNews.

"A great success after 14 years of struggle" said fr. Anand Mathew IMS. The catholic priest was imprisoned twice for his support to local people. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) found that the waste from Varanasi plant had exceeded levels of lead, cadmium or chromium.

Homes destroyed to expand and extend adjacent street. The place of worship and houses stood in a shanty town, in very poor area of the city. For the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) it is "a serious violation of human rights and a way to intimidate the Christian community."

Fr Errol Fernandes SJ, vice principal of St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, talks about the mission of Christians in India today. The importance of educating new generations, and to proclaim the Gospel to otherS. A thought for fR. Alexis Prem Kumar, a Jesuit seized in Afghanistan in early June.

Speaking to AsiaNews Card. Gracias, archbishop of Mumbai, describes "a terrible loss of a man who worked for the development of the Church in Asia and the world”. Card. Simon D. Lourdusamy first Asian appointed to the Curia, died on June 2 and will be buried in Pondicherry, his native diocese.

There is still no news of Fr. Alexis Prem Kumar SJ, Indian head of the Afghan section of the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS). His father, Anthony, speaks of his last meeting with his son: "He told me that even though Afghanistan was still under the yoke of continuing violence, the area in which he worked was peaceful and so I did not have to worry about him."

The man is in custody for further investigation. Some residents of the District of Zendjan , where the kidnapping took place, believe Fr. Alexis Prem Kumar may be located in the district of Gulran.