Ranchi: A sick Keralite Christian priest who was arrested in Jharkhand recently claimed that the jail authorities in the BJP-ruled state were inimical to him and wanted to eliminate him. Soon after he was given bail after intervention by Idukki MP Dean Kuriakose and others, Fr Binoy John, a native of Vettimattom in Kerala's Thodupuzha, spoke about his ordeal after being arrested over a land issue that arose nearly a couple of months ago.

“I almost died in jail. They gave me a shot for fever as I requested medical care and medicine for severe chest pain. I live on a pacemaker, and a compounder attended to me in jail even as the district hospital was just 2 minutes away. Though I had taken a token, checkup was denied at the district hospital. They wanted to kill me slowly by denying medical care. The jailor’s intervention saved me," Fr Binoy stated.

The 35-year-old cleric is currently admitted in a hospital at Lalmati in Sahebganj district of Jharkhand. He plans to reach Kochi for better treatment.

Binoy, who is the son of Yohannan-Mary couple of Thodupuzha in Kerala's Idukki district, has been a priest at Rajadha mission of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bhagalpur for the last one-and-half years. He had to face charges of land grab and religious conversion before being taken in recently. Speaking on the case he said, "The diocese had bought 22 acres of land in 2010 to start the mission. Some people smashed the compound wall a couple months back when senior clerics were on leave. I could not understand their language, but it was clear that they did not want a construction at the site. They filed a complaint at Devadad police station in Godda district. When the police summoned me, I carried all documents with me and took local people Munna Hasta and Charlie along. The police did not file a case since we had all relevant documents."

The Catholic priest's experience with the judiciary was also disappointing. "When I told the magistrate that I was on a pacemaker, he remanded me in custody saying the jail had medical facilities. On the seventh day in jail, I experienced chest pain. I collapsed as soon as the compounder gave a shot on my thigh. Even when my condition worsened on Sunday they did not take me to the hospital," Fr Binoy added.

The priest was likely saved from a critical health flare-up with the timely intervention of the jailor.

"The doctor admitted me only after jailor Munda intervened. I was granted bail the next day though the police opposed it. I hope to get admitted at a Kochi hospital soon where a surgery was performed a couple of years ago. Bhagalpur Bishop Kurien Valiyakandathil has promised to shift me to Kochi once I am fit to travel. Many people helped my release, including Idukki MP Dean Kuriakose. I thank all.”

Fr Binoy aslo claimed he was implicated in a conversion case. "On September 3, a local media published a news item saying I was involved in religious conversion. The police arrived at 6 am and asked me to appear before the Godda SP. Munna and I reached Devadad station and waited there from 8 am to 12 noon the next day before being taken to the SP’s office.

"We were handcuffed when we entered the SP’s office. A black cloth was put over our heads. The SP said two people were arrested for religious conversion. Media took our pictures after the black clothes were removed," the priest narrated.