STATE OF MYSORE Vs. HENRY RODRIGUES AND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal by the State against the judgment of the Assistant Sessions Judge of South Kanara, in Sessions Case No. 3 of 1960, on the file of his Court, me respondents 1 and 2, namely, Sri Henry Radrlgues and Sri B. Jayantha Shetty were the accused 1 and 2, respectively, in the said Sessions Case. The first accused was the editor and publisher of a monthly magazine called "Crusader"; it is also known as "20th Century". The second accused was the printer of the said Magazine. After obtaining from the State Government, the necessary sanction Under Section 196 of the Cr.PC the Special Public Prosecutor laid a complaint before the Additional 6ub Magistrate of Mangaiore, to the effect that in the issues of the above said magazine of August 1958," October 1958 and January 1959, there were certain articles Which were insulting to the Feligion and religious beliefs of the Roman Catholics and that the accused acted with a malicious intention in publishing and printing the same. It was alleged that they committed an offence punishable Under Section 295-A of the IPC The Magistrate, on being satisfied that a prima facie casa bad been made out, charged the first accused for an offence Under Section 295-A of the IPC and the second accused for an offence Under Section 295-A read with Section 109 of the IPC He committed both of them to the their trial before the Court of Session. Both the accused bad pleaded not guilty before the trial Court. The first accused admitted that h was the editor and publisher of the magazine in question. He did not deny his responsibility for the articles complained against, found in the said issues of this magazine. The substance of the stand taken by him is to the effect that he had criticized certain practices and beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church, which were all contrary and opposed to what had been stated in the Holy Bible. He sought to make out that the views expressed in these articles had not been put forward for the first time, but that there are quite a number of other well-known works which had given expression to the same views. He stated that he is himself a Roman Catholic and that he had written all these articles on the basis of the Bible and other sources. He claimed to have made a deep study of the Bible and that he wanted to make known to others, the truth which he bad discovered. He wanted that the articles written by him should be considered in their entirety. He denies having written these articles either with any malice or with a view to outrage the feelings of the Roman Catholics. ' The second accused stated that he was a Hindu and that he did not know anything about the Christian religion. He also stated that he did not know konkani language and that he did not understand English very well. Ho pleaded that he was only a printer and that he had no malicious intention in printing these articles. The learned Assistant Sessions Judge has written a lengthy and detailed judgment. He found that these articles had been deliberately written by the first accused and that some of them were in abusive language and insulting to the religious feelings and beliefs of the Roman Catholics; but, he took the vim that these articles were not written with any malicious intention. He came to the conclusion that no offence Under Section 295-A of the IPC had been committed by the writing and the publishing of the articles complained against; consequently, he acquitted both the accused. The Advocate-General has appeared for the State and Sri Rai and Sri Mohandas N. Hegde have appeared on behalf of the respondents.

(2.) it is not denied that quite a considerable number of Indiana are followers of the Roman Catholic Religion; it is not disputed that for the purposes of Section 295-A of the Indian Penal Code, they are a class of citizens of India. Tile contention advanced on behalf of the appellant is, that the offending-articles (all of which have been specified in the charges) have been written and published may the first accused with the deliberate and malicious mentions of outraging the religious feelings of the Indian Roman Catholics and that these are articles which are insuring to the religious beliefs of the Indian Roman Catholics. The contention advanced By Sri Rai on behalf of the first respondent is, fhat all these articles have been written by the first respondent in a spirit to bring about reformation and out of a sincere conviction that certain practices followed by the Roman Catholics and certain superstitious beliefs entertained by them, are all wholly opposed to what is stated in the Holy Bible. It is contended by him that as long as the first respondent is sincere in his conviction that the said practices and beliefs are against the teachings in the Bible, be would be justified in attacking the same and that any excesses in the language used while making such attacks, need not necessarily be attributable to a malicious intention. But the answer of the learned Advocate-General to this stand taken on behalf of the first respondent is, that the intention of the writer must be judged primarily by the language of the articles and if that language is abusive and calculated to unnecessarily hurt the feelings of the class against which it is directed or is insulting to the religious beliefs of that class, then malicious intention on the part of the writer ought to be inferred. Before proceeding to consider the respective contentions above referred to, it would be desirable to refer briefly to the matters to which these articles generally relate. Sri Rai has taken us through all the articles, which have been specified in the charges framed by the trial Court. The subject of the attack in these articlas are certain practices and beliefs of the followers of the Roman Catholic Religion; the main targets of the attack are, the worship of Virgin Marry, the observance of the Mass, the distribution of wafers and obedience to the Pope, the Roman Church and the priests of that Church. The first respondent claims to have made a deep study of the Holy Bible and become convinced that the Bible does not sanction the worship of Virgin Mary. He admits that Mary is blessed and therefore entitled to be honoured; but, it is only God that is entitled to worship and not Mary who was only a human being. His stand' is that Jesus Christ made the supreme sacrifice for all humanity and for all time to come and that the Bible does not sanction the offer of any other sacrifice to God. The Mass, transubstantiation and the distribution of the wafers amongst the devotees which are practised by the followers of the Roman Church, are all, according to him, the relics of paganism. The worship and prayers offered to the images of Marry which have been set up in ever so many places all over the world, amount, according to him, to adulatory which has been forbidden by the Bible. The Institution of Papacy, is not one sanctioned by the Bible. According to him, the Pope and the Roman Church, have been encouraging superstitious beliefs, in order to profit themselves; much of their preaching is oppasetf to what is stated in the Holy Bible. The priests of the Roman Church have prevented the followers of Christianity from correctly understanding the teachings of Christ. The claim of the first respondent is, that it is in a sincere attempt to remove these evils and in order to make the people understand the real teachings of Christ, that he halt made the attacks against the worship of Virgin Mary and the superstitious beliefs fostered by the Roman Church and it& priests.

(3.) These articles which have been specified in the charge, have all been read out to us by Sri Rai and have been commented upon by him and by the learned Advocate General. There cannot be any doubt that the language used by the firs'; respondent in most of these articles is abusive, often times insulting and that it must have caused very great pain to the followers of the Roman Catholic Church. The learned Assistant Sessions Judge .also, has made it quite clear in a number of places, in his judgment, that the language used by the first respondent in many of these articles is vile and insulting. At para 13 of his judgment, this is what he states. When these fourteen passages are read over, severally or collectively, either one after the other, or in a sequence, we get an impression that the accused has indulged in vile and vitriolic abuses. His expressions are unbridled. It is natural that the series of invectives which he has used would pain any orthodox Roman Catholic. At para 100 of his jddgment, he states as follows : It cannot be denied by the first accused that babylon stands for a 'City of idolatrous cults, dissolute vices, and political oppression.'.... To call the Roman Church Babylon is most offensive. It is in evidence, that the first respondent had been carrying on his campaign against the Roman Church and its priests and certain religious beliefs of the Roman Catholics, since a number of years prior to the complainant which led to this prosecution of the first respondent for an offence Under Section 295-A of the IPC These articles are not due to any sudden impulse of the moment; they are part of a continuous and calculated campaign against the Roman Catholic Church and the followers of that Church; they are the result of deliberate intention on the part of the first respondent. From what is stated at para 123 of his judgment, it is quite clear that the learned trial Judge also was satisfied that these articles have been written by the first respondent, with a deliberate intention.