Unofficial Sharia Court In India Orders Expulsion of Christian Priests

In India's only Muslim-majority state, Jammu & Kashmir, an unofficial sharia court (which was not created by the government) on Jan.19 issued a fatwa ordering the expulsion of three Christian priests. It also urged the government to take over management of missionary schools, introduce Islamic prayer and Islamic studies classes. In particular, the court demanded that a prayer written by an Urdu poet be recited at morning assemblies in all Christian missionary schools. The Asia Times and Hindustan Times report on developments

The court's decree came after one of the priests "confessed" to having converted 15 Muslim boys to Christianity. Last October, footage appeared on the Internet showing Pastor Chander Mani Khanna baptizing Kashmiri Muslim youth, and a reaction included calls for killing Khanna. Later an inflammatory article quoted one of the boys who converted as saying that Khanna used a girl to entice him to drink alcohol and eat "swine meat." Conversion is legal in Jammu & Kashmir. However Khanna was arrested, and then released on bail, charged under Sections 153A of the Ranbir Penal Code that bars "promoting enmity between different groups ... and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony," as well as under Section 295A that prohibits "deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs". Meanwhile, separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani criticized the court's decree, saying: "Kashmiris cannot ignore the contributions of Christian missionary schools towards the educational system in the Valley. Unfortunately, Muslims have not been able to build an educational institution like those by the Christian missionary schools despite all available resources."