Father Louis Hincq, a Belgian priest and a former principal of St Xavier’s Collegiate School, Calcutta, passed away in Brussels, Belgium, on Sunday. He was 98.

Father Hincq breathed his last at the Maison Saint Claude La Colombiere, a home for elderly Fathers.

He had also served as the principal of St Xavier’s School, Burdwan, and in-charge of the Higher Secondary section of St Xavier’s College.

Born in 1922, Father Hincq joined the Jesuit society in 1940. He came to India seven years later. Father Hincq was ordained in 1953 and took his final vows five years later, a release issued by Father Francis Jerome of the Calcutta Jesuit Provincialate in Calcutta on Monday said.

He had learnt Bengali at St Lawrence School and studied theology at St Mary’s, Kurseong. He underwent final training at Sitagarh in Hazaribagh.

Father Hincq returned to Belgium in 1981. Eleven years later, he was “transcribed” to South-Belgium Province.

Father Guy Vanhomission, the superior of Masion Saint Claude La Colombiere, has written to the provincialate: “He (Father Hincq) had been a member of the community practically since the beginnings… the nurses and the personnel are very much affected, for he was an excellent companion. Let us pray for him.”, the release said.

A thanksgiving mass will be held in Brussels on Tuesday. The Fathers at St Xavier’s College, Calcutta, too, will hold a special mass on the Park Street campus.