Vatican interference in India's internal affairs

I see that the Vatican has dared to publicly criticise the Indian national and state governments for their handling of the troubles in Orissa.

Quite apart from the Vatican's own mixed record in this sort of area, what India does or fails to do in terms of its own internal affairs is none of the Vatican's business.

Indians who are Roman Catholics have of course a right to express their views to the nation - as they have been doing.

But it is one of the challenges for Indians who are Roman Catholics to avoid whingeing to the Vatican when they cannot, for good reasons or bad, express their point of view persuasively to their fellow Indians.

Fortunately, Indian Protestants and the (centuries older) Eastern Orthodox have no tradition of a state (such as the Vatican) interfering in the internal affairs of India.

Nor do Muslims, Buddhists and other religious communities.

That is why the Indian government should tell off the Vatican, and nevertheless do what is right - that is, restore law and order, bring the guilty to book, and compensate as well as in every other way support those who are affected. Sphere: Related Content