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Court seeks health reports on Indian Jesuit who died in detention

Church officials are pressing for a judicial probe into the death of Father Stan Swamy
Court seeks health reports on Indian Jesuit who died in detention

People hold posters outside a church holding a memorial Mass for Jesuit priest Father Stan Swamy in Mumbai on July 6. The priest was detained for nine months without trial under Indian anti-terrorism laws and died on July 5 ahead of a bail hearing. (Photo: Indranil Mukherjee/AFP)

Published: July 14, 2021 09:54 AM GMT
Updated: July 14, 2021 10:13 AM GMT

Bombay High Court has summoned medical reports on Indian Jesuit Father Stan Swamy to decide on a probe to ascertain the circumstances that led to his death.

The 84-year priest’s death on July 5 in a Mumbai hospital while he was under judicial custody created uproar across the country and outside, with critics accusing the government of arresting him under fabricated sedition charges to silence him.

“We know that whatever probe the court orders, Father Swamy is not going to return to life,” Father A Santhanam, a Jesuit lawyer who has followed the case closely, told UCA News on July 14.

“But still, we want to know the truth about how Father Swamy died in judicial custody.”

Bombay High Court, the top court in the western state of Maharashtra, on July 13 ordered the state government’s prison department and the hospital where Father Swamy died to submit their reports about the priest's health.

Father Swamy was admitted to Mumbai’s Catholic-run Holy Family Hospital on May 28 with a record of advanced Parkinson’s disease and several other age-related ailments. His hospitalization came nearly eight months after his detention on Oct. 8.

It is mandatory under Indian law to investigate all cases of custodial deaths

The court asked for medical reports following allegations from Father Swamy’s counsel Mihir Desai that the priest died due to a lack of proper medical care in Taloja Central Jail in Mumbai.

India’s federal anti-terror combat agency — the National Investigation Agency (NIA) — arrested the Jesuit at his home in Ranchi, capital of Jharkhand state, over accusations he conspired with outlawed Maoists to destabilize the federal government run by the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The Maharashtra government has reportedly submitted a 300-page report on Father Swamy’s stay in prison including his medical condition and treatment. Holy Family Hospital has also sent its report to the court.

It is mandatory under Indian law to investigate all cases of custodial deaths with a magisterial probe or a judicial probe. A magisterial probe, conducted by senior district officers, is considered inferior to a judicial probe conducted by a sitting judge of a district court or a state high court.

Father Santhanam said the Church demands a judicial probe in Father Swamy’s case. He suspects prison officials “completely misled the courts about the real health condition” of the priest and it resulted in courts continuously denying his bail on health grounds.

When he was moved to hospital, “his condition was very critical. We want to ensure that no one suffers like him at the fag end of one’s life,” the priest said.

He also wants the court to order a probe to hold prison officers responsible for denying “timely and proper medical care” to Father Swamy.

The priest was provided with a straw to drink water and other liquids only after a public uproar and weeks after his dentition.

The court will consider the case on July 19 to decide the type of investigation.

Considering the seriousness of the issue, lawyer Desai is likely to demand a judicial probe, Father Santhanam said. 

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