After claiming that it was not inclined to control and regulate Christian properties, the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh has allegedly permitted the state minorities commission to do exactly that.

A retired judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court has been asked by the commission to draft a proposal after studying various legislations governing properties of other religions. Justice (Rt) V S Kokje, who was governor of Himachal Pradesh, has been given three months to finalise the proposal, which the commission will submit to the state government.

The commission's Christian representative, Anand Bernard, who first floated the idea in January this year, told The Indian Express that he got a clearance from the Chief Minister's office before engaging the retired judge.

The commission's move has been opposed by the Catholic Church that has scores of churches, establishments and cemeteries across Madhya Pradesh, saying it violated their fundamental rights. Spokesman of Catholic Church Fr Anand Muttungal points out that that no other state has a body like the one proposed in Madhya Pradesh.

The Church also claims that when a delegation sent by them met Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, he claimed he was not aware of the proposal. "No such body would be formed without taking the community into confidence,"  Chouhan reportedly told them.

Bernard, however, says the move was initiated at the behest of Christians, especially Protestants, who said their properties were being sold off at throwaway prices and they could do little about it in the absence of proper records.

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