Fr Stan Swami SJ
(File photo courtesy of jesuits.org)
The 84-year-old Fr Stan Swami SJ died just ahead of his third scheduled bail hearing By Benwen Lopez
— Mumbai — Jailed Indian priest and tribal rights activist, Fr Stanislaus Lourduswami, SJ (Stan Swami) passed away today at 1:30 PM (IST) in Mumbai’s Holy Family Hospital, just ahead of his third bail hearing before the Bombay High Court. The 84-year-old Jesuit priest was transferred to the hospital from prison on orders from the Bombay High Court after he contracted Covid-19 during his time in prison.
Dr Ian D’Souza, Medical Director of Holy Family Hospital, said, “Fr Swami suffered a cardiac arrest on Sunday morning, after which he was put on the ventilator but he could not recover and passed away today.” Besides Covid-19, he was also suffering from Parkinson’s disease and diabetes.
In a statement to the Bombay High Court, Fr Swami’s lawyer, Mihir Desai, claimed there was negligence on behalf of the prison authorities because they failed to provide medical attention Fr Swami urgently required. Advocate Desai had also stated that it took 10 days for the prison authorities to take Fr Swami to the hospital despite his deteriorating health condition, which required urgent critical care.
“We are deeply saddened by the death of Fr Stan Swami,” said the President of the Jesuit South Asian Conference (POSA), Fr Jerome Stanislaus D’Souza SJ, in remarks to the Catholic Herald. “In his death, we have lost a great Jesuit, who loved Jesus and the poor.”
“He lived a simple life and worked for the mission of the Society of Jesus: reconciliation and justice,” said Fr D’Souza of his late confrere, Fr Stan Swami. “He worked especially for the rights of the indigenous people and the Dalits.”
“I am sure, his death will awaken the conscience of people and energise many to embrace the cause of the poor and the marginalized,” Fr D’Souza said. “We thank all the people of goodwill for extending support to Fr Stan and his cause.”
In earlier statements to the court and his community, Fr Swami had informed that he was heavily reliant on a drinking straw and sipper-tumbler to drink fluids independently, which was granted to him after more than a month, following his request to the court.
Fr Swami had also informed that he was being cared for by his co-prisoners who would feed and bathe him because he physically could not manage those duties. In May, via video conferencing, he informed the court that he would die if he wasn’t granted bail.
Fr Stan Swami was a Jesuit for 64 years and a priest for 51 years, who selflessly served the poor and marginalised. He was incarcerated since October 2020 after he was arrested by India’s National Investigative Agency (NIA) for his alleged role in inciting riots in Bhima Koregaon (a village in India’s western state of Maharashtra) in 2018.
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