Police deny permission to Palm Sunday event citing security reasons; 'shocking', says Catholic body
New Delhi (PTI): A Catholic body said it was denied permission for the Annual Way of the Cross procession, a key religious event observed by the Christian community on Palm Sunday, in the national capital, and condemned it as "shocking and unfair".
Sources in the Delhi Police said the permission was denied as it was a "non-traditional procession", and added that police can deny such permissions due to "security concerns".
"There are rules on traditional processions and non-traditional processions. The (Palm Sunday) procession falls under non-traditional procession due to which the request was denied. Usually, we deny many requests from all communities for non-traditional processions," the source said.
Union minister George Kurian said the permission for the procession was denied due to "security reasons" and noted that even Hanuman Jayanti procession, which was scheduled for Saturday, was not granted approval.
"All processions of this nature have been restricted," added Kurian, the Minister of State for Minority Affairs.
The denial of permission for the Palm Sunday by the police drew criticism from leaders of opposition parties Congress and CPI(M). Palm Sunday marks the Sunday before Easter, which will be held on April 20.
In a statement, the Catholic Association of the Archdiocese of Delhi (CAAD) said, "This is deeply shocking and unfair. The procession has always been peaceful and well-coordinated with authorities. The reason cited -- law and order and traffic -- doesn't hold when others get approvals for similar events."
Held annually from St Mary's Church to Sacred Heart Cathedral, the procession commemorates the Passion of Jesus Christ and attracts thousands of faithful, said AC Michael, President of CAAD.
Kerala Chief Minister and CPI(M) leader Pinarayi Vijayan said the Delhi Police's decision to deny permission for the 'Kuruthola Pradakshinam' (Palm Sunday procession) at the Sacred Heart Church, Delhi was condemnable.
He said this was a violation of the constitutional guarantees of religious freedom and secular values. Such actions, which undermine the religious beliefs of minorities, are not in line with a pluralistic society, the Kerala CM said.
Congress general secretary KC Venugopal wrote a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and said the move amounted to a "serious attack on the religious freedom" and "selective targeting" to silence minority voices.
"The Sacred Heart Cathedral in Delhi had been carrying out this peaceful religious procession for the last 15 years and, therefore, denying permission without concrete reasons raises questions about the government's commitment to upholding the fundamental right to practice and profess one's religion freely," he said in the letter.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
