KOCHI: In a major blow to the Orthodox Church, the Supreme Court on Monday ordered that status quo should be maintained in the affairs of Church of Kings at Piravom, popularly called Piravom church.
The church is under the control of Jacobite Syrian Church and it conducts the holy mass and other services at the church. “The move by the Orthodox Church to wrest control of the Piravom church failed following the SC order. More than 80 per cent of the believers in the church are Jacobites and therefore there are no compelling circumstances which necessitate the handover of the church to the others,” said Fr Varghese Kallappara, Jacobite Church’s former spokesperson .
It was in July this year the Orthodox Church approached the SC seeking implementation of the July 2017 apex court ruling which has given the Orthodox Church control over more than 1,100 parishes and their churches.