Mumbai: Women members of Bandra’s churches are demanding equal rights to family graves after being told by the St Andrew’s Church that their husbands and children do not have rights to the burial plots located in the church’s premises.
In August 2024, the church asked members to submit notarised affidavits with names of those who can be buried in the family graves. The deadline ended on January 31 and was extended to February 5. However, many families have refused to submit the affidavits saying that the church’s rules are discriminatory to women members.
Karen D’Mello, former municipal corporator from Bandra who has been pursuing the issue with the Archdiocese of Bombay, said she did not think daughters should be treated differently from a son.
“What the church is doing is wrong. What if I have one one child, a daughter? Why should she not be allowed to get burial rights for her husband and children? Will her burial plot remain unused after her demise?” asked Mello who is from St Anne’s Church whose members also use the burial ground at St Andrew’s Church.
A member of St Andrew’s Church whose husband is not from Mumbai said her father has refused to sign the affidavit if his son-in-law and grandchildren are not allowed to be included in the list of people eligible to be buried in the family’s burial plot which they had bought in the 1970s.
“My husband does not have a family grave in Mumbai. Why should he be buried somewhere else when my family has a burial plot?” said the church member.
Churches in Mumbai are facing a shortage of burial spaces and do not allow families to buy burial plots anymore. However, many of the old churches have burial plots purchased by member families decades or centuries ago. St Andrew’s Church, which dates back to the 16th century has over 1500 graves, many of which are owned by families who reuse the graves and pay the church for their maintenance. The church has around 6000 members.
Earlier, married daughters were not allowed to be buried in their family graves as it was expected that they had moved to their husband’s parish. These rules were amended in the 1960s to give daughters a right to the burial plots, but husbands and children continue to be excluded from the rights.
“Earlier, daughters had no rights to even family property. Civil laws have changed. Why are they discriminating against women?” asked a church member who gave the example of a fellow churchgoer whose husband was born in Europe and is now a member of his wife’s Bandra parish.
“He converted from a Protestant denomination to Roman Catholicism to marry her. Her family has a burial plot. Why should he be buried somewhere else?” The church member said at least 30 women in St Andrew’s parish have been affected by the rule.
Father Clarence Fonseca, Parish Priest of St Andrew’s Church, said that they were following laid-down rules and regulations. “There is a relaxation for daughters, not their husbands and children. The archdiocese allows each church to lay down its rules,” said Fonseca who added that the rules have been put in place because of the shortage of burial plots.
“Time will come when there will be no place for burial. Families should surrender their plots if they are not used regularly. We have to reuse graves once every three or four years because of the shortage,” Fonseca added.
Community groups suggested that the archdiocese should implement a common policy for cemeteries owned by parishes. “Parish Priests make their rules on the basis of their comfort without considering the views of the parishioners. It is time for change in this mindset,” said Gleason Barretto, founder trustee of the Mobai Gaothan Panchayat.
D’Mello said that church members had taken up the issue of discrimination with Archbishop Oswald Gracias who resigned last month and has been succeeded by Archbishop John Rodrigues. “We hope that the issue will be resolved by the new archbishop,” said D’Mello.
