Father Stan Swamy remembered in Bengaluru on second death anniversary
Father Frazer Mascarenhas, the former principal of St Xaviers College in Mumbai, in whose care Fr Swamy was in his last days, termed the Jharkhand-based activist as a committed Jesuit and scholar and recalled his activism towards the welfare of the tribal communities.
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Still from a peaceful protest in Mumbai on July 6, 2021, following the death of Stan Swamy. (Express photo) Father Stan Swamy, the Jesuit priest who died while in judicial custody in connection with Elgaar Parishad case, was remembered on his second death anniversary at an event held in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
Father Frazer Mascarenhas, the former principal of St Xavier’s College in Mumbai, in whose care Fr Swamy was in his last days, termed the Jharkhand-based activist as a committed Jesuit and scholar and recalled his activism to help the tribal communities.
“Father Stan Swamy was a committed Jesuit…his motivation stemmed from experiencing God not only in church but also as part of society…the reason he joined as a Jesuit in central India has to help the tribal communities.”
He said that the priest realised that you cannot be an activist or help people until you study what is happening. “You cannot make a difference just by joining morchas……his real grassroots work was going around in villages and raising awareness of what was happening. Without raising awareness, you can’t get social change,” pointed out Fr Mascarenhas who had petitioned the Bombay High Court on behalf of The Society of Jesus to have Fr Swamy’s name cleared from the case.
On the occasion, Maitreyi Krishnan of the All India Lawyers Association for Justice described the death of 84-year-old Fr Swamy as an institutional murder,
She pointed out that the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) had become notorious for its oppressive legal processes which targeted people speaking up. She noted that around 98 per cent of cases under UAPA ended in acquittals, but the accused had to go through long and arduous trials. Even in the remaining 2 per cent, she said a large section consisted of those who had availed of plea bargains, she highlighted.
Dr V Suresh, national general secretary of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties, recalled that he had first come to know Father Stan Swamy as the director of Bangalore’s Indian Social Institute. “He asked a question I still remember, ‘Why are the poor poor? Is it that they don’t want to be rich or are they made to be poor? Are systems and structures made to keep them where they are?’” he said.
“He stood for a deep sense of humanness and faith in the common person. There would have been enough for him to become frustrated, but the task of rebuilding society cannot be done with bitterness,” he said, pointing to the fact that Fr Swamy who suffered from Parkinson’s disease was not given a sipper, despite his request.
The event was organised by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties at the Ashirwad Centre on St Marks Road.
Fr Swamy was arrested in the Elgaar Parishad case by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in October 2020 and a chargesheet was filed against him for his alleged links with banned CPI (Maoist). Swamy had denied the charges.
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