Kerala Bishop receives death threat from 'Islamist' group

Kozhikode Nov 1 (IANS) Thamarassery Bishop Remigiose Inchananiyil has received a death threat through an anonymous letter, purportedly sent in the name of an outfit calling itself the “Islamic Defence Force of India.”

The letter, addressed from Erattupetta in Kottayam district, has been signed by a person identifying himself as Abdul Rasheed.

The letter was delivered to the Bishop’s office and has since been handed over to the Thamarassery Police.

Police said the letter, written in Malayalam, contains threatening language not only against the Bishop but also against the Christian community as a whole.

Preliminary findings suggest that the intent behind the communication was to provoke communal tension.

The threat was received while Bishop Inchananiyil is currently on a pastoral tour of Australia, church sources confirmed.

The Thamarassery police have launched a detailed investigation into the incident, and a forensic examination of the letter and envelope is underway to verify its origin.

Officials said that while the message mentioned the Bishop, the tone of the letter appeared to be targeting the Christian community in general, with inflammatory references intended to create unrest.

Cyber and intelligence units have been roped in to trace the sender and determine whether the so-called organisation has any real presence or is being used as a front.

Security has been tightened at the Bishop’s office and nearby church institutions.

Police are also collecting CCTV footage from surrounding areas to identify anyone who may have delivered the letter.

Incidentally Erattupetta in the past, there have been reports of camps being held by the now-banned SIMI, and the NIA had made an arrest.

Bishop Remigiose Inchananiyil belongs to the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, one of the Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with Rome.

He is the Bishop of the Diocese (Eparchy) of Thamarassery, which comes under the Archdiocese of Thalassery in Kerala.

The Syro-Malabar Church follows the East Syriac liturgical tradition and is headquartered at Mount St. Thomas, Kakkanad, Kochi.

--IANS

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