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Major Archbishop of Syro-Malabar Church to face trial over land deals: HC
The case relates to the sale of 60 cents of land (100 cents is one acre) in Kochi. The sale deed in the case was finalised without even receiving the payment. In the deed, the property was also allegedly undervalued to evade taxes
Cardinal Mar George Alancherry, Major Archbishop of Syro-Malabar Church and head of the Ernakulam-Angamally Diocese, will have to face trial in a case related to irregularities in land deals, the Kerala high court ruled on Thursday.
Alancherry moved the high court after a lower dismissed his pleas to quash six cases pending against him. The high court observed that prima facie it found some impropriety in land dealings carried out by the cardinal.
The case relates to the sale of 60 cents of land (100 cents is one acre) in Kochi. The sale deed in the case was finalised without even receiving the payment. In the deed, the property was also allegedly undervalued to evade taxes. The difference amount was not also allegedly deposited in the account of the diocese, and it lost ₹60 crore in the land deals executed by the cardinal between 2013 and 2018.
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In 2018, one Shine Varghese moved the high court with a plea that allegations against Alancherry be probed. A single bench of the court directed the police to register cases against him. The court also then pulled up the police for not registering cases against Alancherry, who was elected as the Major Archbishop in 2011. He is the senior-most priest of the country.
The income tax department also imposed a fine of ₹3 crore on Ernakulam-Angamally Diocese for alleged improprieties in the land. It inspected papers after undervaluing allegations surfaced and found that the price shown in the papers was lower than the market price and the difference was not deposited in the account of the diocese.
After the Ernakulam-Angamally diocese allegedly lost money due to the land deals, a section of the clergy and believers revolted against Alancherry and some of them even petitioned Pope Francis. After many complaints, police investigated the deals and found that the price shown in the deed papers was far lower than the market price. But the case failed to make any progress.
The Ernakulam-Angamally diocese is the richest diocese in the country. Supporters of the Cardinal insist he was made a scapegoat and that allegations against him are flimsy.
