“An irreligious act”

Dasturs Khurshed Dastur, (Drs) Kaikhusroo JamaspAsa, Peshotan Mirza and Firoze M. Kotwal wrote to the Bom­bay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) trustees condemning the navjote and asking the trustees to "prevent” the navjotes:

"It has been brought to our notice that the navjote ceremonies of Zinatra and Tushar D’Souza, followed by a reception will be held on Friday, April 16, 2010. The ceremony we understand is being done on the two children whose father is a Mr Savio D’Souza. Clearly as the name suggests, he must be a Christian and probably a Roman Catholic.

"As per the customs and traditions of the Parsi Zoroastrian religion, the children of a Parsi mother married to a non-Parsi cease to be Parsis and therefore cannot be initiated into the Zoroastrian faith.

"We the high priests of the Parsi community strongly condemn this irreligious act. Navjotes of children belonging to non-Parsi/Irani Zoroastrian fathers are not considered to be part of the Zoroastrian faith or community and we view such practices as an open act of conversion — a practice which is not followed by the Parsi community. This view is also held by all the trustees of the BPP.

"We urge the BPP to take the necessary, firm and immediate action against this religious farce which is being performed by renegade priests who in our opinion have been debarred, by not only their respective ‘tolas (sects),’ but by all the high priests of the Zoroastrian faith.

"We believe that this sort of farcical initiation/reception will undoubtedly upset the religious sentiments of our community and therefore create a law and order situation which we would, in all sincerity, like to avoid.

"We therefore request you to take this matter up urgently with the necessary authorities in order to prevent this irreligious act from taking place on Friday, April 16, 2010 at St Joseph’s Primary Section Grounds (full address stated).

"We believe Savio D’Souza lives at (full address stated). We enclose a xerox copy of the invitation distributed.”