Referendum to resolve church dispute: Orthodox Church rejects proposal of Justice KT Thomas Commission

DUBAI: The Malankara Orthodox Church's Supreme Head Baselios Marthoma Mathews III has said that the proposal of the Justice KT Thomas Commission to conduct a referendum on churches affected by the Orthodox-Jacobite Church dispute cannot be accepted. The Malankara Church Supreme Head said that the court had not asked for a consensus and that the court had made it clear that peace is needed.

Legislation violating the Supreme Court judgment is not valid. The government has not yet announced whether it will go for legislation. A government with the rectitude to enforce the court order is in power. Baselios Marthoma Mathews III said in Sharjah that the church's previous position that law should take its course in church disputes has not changed. The recommendations of the Law Reform Commission chaired by Justice KT Thomas were handed over to Law Minister P Rajeev by Commission Deputy Chairman K Sasidharan Nair yesterday.