The Supreme Court of India upheld the dismissal of an Indian Army officer, Lt. Samuel Kamalesan, who refused to enter his regiment’s sarva dharma sthal, a multi-faith place of worship, ruling that he had allowed “religious ego” to override military discipline, according to a Nov. 25 report from The Federal.
In their ruling dismissing Kamalesan’s appeal, Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi called him a “misfit for the Indian Army” and criticized what it described as “gross indiscipline.”
Kamalesan, commissioned in 2017 into the 3rd Cavalry Regiment, had refused between 2019 and 2021 to enter the unit’s place of worship that includes a gurdwara and temple, during formal parades, according to The Federal’s report. Kamalesan argued that being required to step into the sanctum during such parades violated his monotheistic Christian faith.
The Army dismissed him in 2021 after multiple refusals. His counsel argued that his monotheistic beliefs prevented him from entering the inner sanctum and that he had participated in festivals like Holi and Diwali to respect other faiths. The bench rejected the explanation.
The court said a soldier cannot put personal religious interpretations above the collective ethos of the armed forces. It noted that Kamalesan had rejected his pastor’s counsel that entering the structure would not violate his faith.
Stating that his personal understanding of religious practice could not supersede discipline, the Supreme Court said Kamalesan’s behavior violated the Army’s secular fabric.
The bench concluded, “He may excel in several ways, but he is a misfit for the Indian Army.”
The post Court upholds Indian army’s firing of Christian officer appeared first on CatholicVote org.