1/21/2025 India (International Christian Concern) — The Supreme Court of India (SCI) on Jan. 18 reprimanded authorities in Chhattisgarh for not assisting in the burial of a Christian in a tribal village in the state’s southern province of Bastar.
A bench of two SCI judges, while expressing surprise over the fact that the body of Pastor Subhash Baghel had been in a mortuary since Jan. 7, said they found it inexplicable that state authorities couldn’t help in the burial and sought an explanation.
Their statements came as the SCI heard an appeal filed by Ramesh Baghel, the pastor’s son and member of the Mahra caste. His appeal challenged an order of the Chhattisgarh High Court that rejected his plea to bury his father’s body in a burial area in his village designated for Christians.
In a similar case of opposition against burial rights for Christians, the Chhattisgarh High Court granted a favorable order in April 2024. But this time, the high court denied permission, saying it may cause unrest and public disharmony.
The high court verdict relied on a certificate issued by the village panchayat (village council) chief that there are no separate burial grounds for Christians in the village.
“Leave the village panchayat; even the high court has passed a strange order,” the judges said in a statement. “What is the state government doing?”
This matter pertains to the village of Chhindawada in Bastar district, which has a graveyard informally divided by the gram panchayat (village council) into separate sections for tribals, Hindus, and Christians.
Many deceased Christians have already been buried in the Christian burial section of the graveyard.
When Ramesh Baghel went to bury his father’s remains in the section of his village’s graveyard designated for Christian burial, several villagers aggressively objected. They also prohibited the family from burying the body on their own private property.
When the family contacted police, officers pressured them to remove the body from the village. The police also threatened legal action if Christian burial rites were conducted within the village.
Ramesh Baghel subsequently submitted applications seeking protection and support from district authorities and police officials, but no action was taken.
With no other option, the family filed a writ petition before the Chhattisgarh High Court on Jan. 9. The court dismissed the petition two days later, stating that since a separate cemetery for Christians was available roughly 15 miles away, the family could use that location. The cemetery referenced is in Karkapal, nearly 30 miles from Chhindawada.
Upset with the High Court’s verdict, Baghel appealed to the SCI based in New Delhi.
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