Church gets CM nod to use August Kranti Maidan

The St Stephen's Catholic Church, Cumballa Hill will be able to uphold it's 55-year tradition of holding the Good Friday service at the August Kranti Maidan.

The St Stephen's Catholic Church, Cumballa Hill will be able to uphold it's 55-year tradition of holding the Good Friday service at the August Kranti Maidan.

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Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan on Monday, after a meeting with a delegation, gave the church the go-ahead.

Last week, the state cultural affairs' secretary had denied the church permission to hold the service at the historic ground, citing a high court order that disallowed religious functions on public grounds.

A delegation, comprising parish priest Father Ernest Fernandes, state minority affairs minister Naseem Khan and members of Catholic organisations then presented their case to Chavan. "I am glad the CM granted permission in favour of the Catholic community and the parish," said Khan. "The 55-year-old service has been a very important tradition for the community," he added.

Thanking the CM, Father Fernandes said: "The service is attended by more than 3,000 members of the community every year. The entire community was upset when we were denied permission and asked to find another location, less than a week before the service," he said.