Church leaders welcomed the acquittal but complained that media outlets that had widely publicised the original charges failed to report on the dismissal of the case.
Eight years after a case was filed against the Missionaries of Charity sisters for alleged child trafficking, a local court in Jharkhand state has acquitted them of all charges even as local media blacked out the news.
After a protracted trial, on 18 June the Ranchi civil court declared the accused – an elderly nun of the Missionaries of Charity nun, who was jailed for over a year, and an aide – not guilty due to insufficient evidence.
“I am very, very happy and relieved. Finally justice has prevailed,” said Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas of Daltonganj, in Jharkhand state, who stood by the sisters since the case was filed.
He told The Tablet that the “politically motivated” case was concocted to malign the reputation of the sisters. He regretted that the dismissal of the case was largely ignored by Indian outlets.
“This very media had gone to town tearing to smithereens the reputation of the congregation established by Mother Teresa, popularly known as the saint of the gutters, on unfounded allegations,” he said.
When the case was registered it made the front pages of most newspapers, which provided extensive coverage, but few have reported the acquittal either in the state or across the country.
“At first I did not believe that all media would have ignored or boycotted the news. On close scrutiny I found just a solitary newspaper had a small report,” veteran rights activist and journalist John Dayal told The Tablet.
Even respected non-partisan dailies blanked out the news, despite their previous reportage on the false allegations, some even claiming there was a “huge plot to sell children”. No wonder India is so low on the Press Freedom Index, Dayal observed.
“Obviously there were strict instructions not to give publicity to the judgement,” Bishop Mascarenhas said. “However, we are planning to hold a press conference. People should know of the nefarious designs to humiliate a minority community that has contributed so much towards public welfare.”
On 14 July 2018, Sr Concilia Baxla, who led the unwed mothers’ section of Nirmal Hriday (“Pure Heart”) home in Ranchi, capital of Jharkhand, was arrested alongside an aide, Anima Indwar.
The arrest followed a complaint by the state-run Child Welfare Committee (CWC) that Indwar had taken money for adoption of an infant but did not give the child to the couple.
Sr Mary Prema, then-superior general of the Missionaries of Charity, denied allegations that the infant was sold by the order.
She regretted the “many myths being spread, information distorted and false news being diffused and baseless innuendos being thrown about regarding the Mother Teresa Sisters”.
The Missionaries of Charity stopped arranging adoptions in India in 2015 as they did not consent to the new government rules that allowed single, divorced and separated persons to adopt children.
They sent the children to CWC who arranged for the adoption of unwanted infants.
Sr Baxla spent almost 15 months in jail before getting bail, according to Bishop Mascarenhas. He said the nuns had suffered immensely for no fault of theirs.
The reputation of the congregations was tarnished, and they were ridiculed every time they stepped out.
It was a stark contrast to how Mother Theresa nuns were revered for their work until then in India, he added.