Rabbi Deported From Ernakulam

The shofar (Jewish trumpet) has fallen silent at the Pardesi Synagogue in Kerala's Mattancherry, home to the oldest Jewish settlement in India.

A deportation notice was issued by collector P. I. Sheik Pareeth, who took the view that Bernstein and his wife "violated visa conditions by organising activities related to their religious life and belief under the organisation Habad in a synagogue in Mattancherry".

Pareeth then not only stuck to his original stand but also cited an "intelligence report against them" to justify the deportation order.

As the perplexed rabbi and his wife sought details of the "intelligence report", state attorney P. Vijayaraghavan told the bench that their presence in Kochi (the commercial capital that falls in Ernakulam district) could jeopardise national security.

The explanation given called into question the ability of the Indian State to protect people within its territory. The attorney said the presence of the couple could irk jihadi groups and there was a possibility of them being targeted.

 Indian mission ends for a rabbi