Father Stan Swamy is a name to reckon with when it comes to working for the uplift of the tribal community. His demise on Monday was mourned by one and all - with sadness for his passing, with loving respect for his work and what he stood for, but with anger too at the way the 84-year-old Parkisons's patient was treated in prison.
Recalling the work of Father Swamy, Father Felix Raj, Vice-Chancellor, St Xavier’s University, Calcutta said, “This is a great loss to the country and the tribal community of Jharkhand in particular. He had stood by them till the end of his life. With his death, the work that he was doing for the marginalized community has come to an end.”
He paused and added, “It’s sad to see a man of the stature of Father Stan Swamy being treated the way he has been. He was no criminal. He was an 84-year-old priest, working for the poor. He was denied bail till the very end of his life. He wouldn’t have absconded.”
Mentioning his frail health Father Felix Raj said, “The way he was treated in the prison was inhuman. He was suffering from Parkinson's disease. He was a high-risk patient, but he was kept in the prison, where he contracted Covid-19. I wonder, why wasn’t he given proper treatment earlier, why was he denied medical bail. Sadly, today he breathed his last. The loss is not just of the community, but the country.”
CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Monday said he was pained and outraged over the death of Father Stan Swamy. Refering to Swamy being under UAPA custody, the inhuman treatment since October 2020 despite no charge being established, Yechury asked for accountability for 'this murder in custody'.
While senior Congress leader asked, who would be held responsible for Fr Swamy's death. In his tweet, without mincing words he held the Indian state responsible for the death of a crusader for social justice.
Hailing from Tamil Nadu’s Trichy district, Swamy had studied theology and done his Masters in Sociology in the Philippines. His friendship with a Brazilian Catholic Archbishop Hélder Câmara influenced him a lot.
Swamy was a former Director of the Jesuit-run Indian Social Institute. He served the institute between 1975 to 1986. Working for the upliftment of the tribals, he had questioned the non-implementation of the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, which stipulates setting up of a Tribes Advisory Council.
