Church row: Catholicos Thomas I meets MLAs

KOCHI: With the intention of ensuring government support in finding a solution to the ongoing Jacobite-Orthodox rift, the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church convened a meeting with UDF MLAs and senior leaders in Ernakulam district on Saturday.  Head of the church Catholicos Baselios Thomas I invited the MLAs, who are also members of the Jacobite church, to the church headquarters at Puthencruz, to hold discussions on the matter.Among those who participated in the meeting with the Catholicos include Civil Supplies Minister Anoop Jacob, MLAs Benny Behanan, T U Kuruvila, Saju Paul, UDF convenor P P Thankachan and DCC president V J Paulose. Saju Paul, who belongs to the LDF, met the prelate after the UDF leaders and MLAs held discussions with the him.“The Catholicos urged the political leadership to prevent the church issue from blowing up into a major law and order problem,” said church spokesperson Fr Varghese Kallappara. “The dispute between the two factions has often ended up in manhandling and police lathicharge. The Catholicos has expressed his sorrow over such incidents,” Fr Kallappara added.He also said that the Catholicos did not put forward any demands before the politicians. “The meeting was held to convince the MLAs and ministers about the need to deal with the issuesin a proactive manner, and to ensure their support in the fight for justice. We hope that the MLAs and the ministers would present the matter before the government in the correct manner, and give it due importance.,” he said.He alleged that the UDF leaders, who had sought the support of the church during the the Piravom bypoll, were ignoring it now that the results were out. “The UDF leaders were in contact with the church leadership, but the police brutally assaulted our people at Pazhanthottam church, on the very day of election results,” he said.