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Work suspended after New Delhi claims it may be a naval facility
View(s):The construction of a new church on the island of Kachchativu has been stopped by the Sri Lankan Government after India raised issues over it.
Navy Commander Ravindra Wijegunaratne told the Sunday Times construction work had been suspended until the issues were resolved. He said the Navy had been asked to undertake the construction by Jaffna’s Bishop the Rt. Rev. Dr. Bernard Gnanapragasam.
The foundation stone was laid last Monday. Vice Admiral Wijegunaratne said the Bishop had pointed out to him during last year’s Kachchativu feast, attended by thousands of devotees from Sri Lanka and South India, that the existing church was too small.
The Navy Chief denied claims by India’s External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup that a Naval facility was being built on the island, which India recognised as Sri Lankan territory in terms of a 1974 agreement. Mr Swarup said his Ministry had asked the Indian High Commission in Colombo to take up the matter with the Sri Lankan Government.
Taking part in Monday’s foundation stone laying ceremony were Jaffna’s Vicar General Rev. Father Joseph Das Jebaratnam, parish priest Rev. Father Anthony Jeyaranjan and Northern Navy Commander Piyal de Silva who represented the Navy.
On the eve of the foundation stone laying ceremony, Navy Headquarters said it would extend its fullest cooperation to construct the new church before next year’s feast of St. Anthony.
Meanwhile Tamil Nadu Chief minister Jeyram Jayalalitha has charged that the move by the Government to “demolish and reconstruct the St. Anthony’s Church, without consulting Tamil Nadu fishermen who are vital stakeholders, appears to be a carefully calculated provocation.”
In a letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday, she strongly opposed the move to construct a new church without the consent of the Tamil Nadu fishermen.
“The Sri Lankan side should be prevailed upon to accept the reconstruction of the church jointly by India and Sri Lanka after obtaining the concurrence of the Tamil Nadu fishermen,” she said.
“St. Anthony’s Church on Kachchativu Island holds considerable religious significance for the fisher folk in the coastal districts of Tamil Nadu including Nagapattinam, Thanjavur, Pudukkottai, Ramanathapuram, Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli. They have traditionally undertaken pilgrimages to the island for the annual festival of St Anthony’s for several centuries. It is part of their essential cultural and religious heritage,” she said in the letter.