Mumbai: 2 churches tussle over name on power bill

Members of the Church of North India (CNI) filed a complaint against the followers of the Karnataka Church, after its members changed the name on the Church's electricity bill to theirs.

Members of both churches conduct prayer services at the Hume Memorial Congregation Victoria Garden Church at Byculla. While the CNI looks after the church, Karnataka Church members say they started praying there before the CNI.

"When some members informed me that the Karnataka Church changed the name on the electricity bill to theirs, we filed a complaint. We even approached the BEST and got the name back to what it used to be. The police have only registered an NC when they should have filed an FIR," said Cyril Dara, a CNI member.

The priest of the CNI, who looks after the prayer service, also, through his office, complained both to the police and the BEST.

"We have also filed a complaint against the Karnataka Church for breaking CCTV cameras. Since we do not feel that we should be wasting community funds on court cases, we have not approached the court," said Rev MS Soholkar. While the complaint over the CCTV cameras being broken is with Byculla police, that of change in name on the electricity bill has been registered with Nagpada police as the records of the bills are in its jurisdiction. Police refused to comment on the issue.

"The Church does not belong to them or to us. Both pray there. In fact we have been praying before they came. The property of the Church belongs to Weslian Methodist Church and even the electricity bill is in their name. None of them are there. We were trying to change the name only to protect our interest of praying there. It is not our property. Their own peon removed the CCTV cameras," said Stanley Karkada, a member of the Karnataka Church.