Chennai: The Madras High Court has ruled that preaching or any other activity linked to dissemination of religious information by an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) amounts to missionary work that requires special permission from the Government.
The court upheld the cancellation of the OCI permit of an Indian-origin US citizen, John Daniel.
Justice Bharatha Chakravarthy issued the order on Wednesday, confirming that the Bureau of Immigration’s decision dated September 4 to cancel the OCI permit was in accordance with law.
The petitioner had contended that he visits India, mainly Chennai, to see his mother and other family members and to pay respects to deceased elders at their graves in the Kilpauk Garden Road cemetery. He denied being part of any missionary activity or violating any law governing OCI card-holders.
The court, however, noted that authorities had evidence of him addressing congregations and other meetings across Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. The material produced in court includes published advertisements inviting public participation in these events.
“Those materials can’t be regarded as fabricated or concocted,” Justice Chakravarthy observed.
The court further observed, “It is one thing to contend that the petitioner is not involved in conversion and is only spreading the message of God. Not only for conversion, but even to be a missionary preaching his religion, prior permission is mandated.”
The judge held that Daniel’s claim that he had never engaged in missionary activity in India “is, on the face of it, a lie”.
The court clarified that the petitioner is free to apply for a regular visa to visit his mother, but is barred from religious activity unless cleared by the government.
