Sanal Edamaruku, an Indian rationalist living in exile in Finland, was arrested in Warsaw. He had to leave India in 2012 after the Church hounded him as he questioned the Monica Besra miracle.
Sanal Edamaruku arrested in Poland
Sanal Edamaruku was recently arrested in Poland on March 28 at Warsaw’s Modlin Airport, according to a report by The Hindustan Times, which cited local news agencies. Edamaruku was scheduled to speak at a human rights conference when the arrest took place. The Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs confirmed awareness of the incident.
His organisation, Rationalist International, stated that the arrest was linked to a notice issued by Indian authorities, including an Interpol red notice. The Indian government has sought his extradition in connection with blasphemy charges.
These charges stem from a 2012 incident when Edamaruku investigated what was believed to be a miracle – water dripping from a crucifix in Mumbai. He concluded that the source was a sewage leak, not a divine phenomenon, which sparked outrage from the Catholic Church in India and led to the blasphemy case. Since then, he has lived in self-imposed exile in Finland, claiming that his life would be at risk if he returned to India. His organisation has also pointed to past violence against Indian rationalists as a cause for concern.
Who is Sanal Edamaruku?
According to his LinkedIn profile, Sanal Edamaruku studied at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi. Between April 2008 and January 2012, he served as President of the International Centre for Kathakali in New Delhi. A passionate proponent of the art form, he performed on Kathakali stages from his student days. Later, Edamaruku directed productions based on non-traditional themes, such as the Nigerian play Shakila and the Finnish epic Kalevala. He is also credited with introducing female roles in Kathi and Pacha styles within Kathakali performances.
From July 1985 to June 2012, Edamaruku worked as a columnist and national political analyst with the Kerala Sabdam group of publications, and served as its Bureau Chief from 2006 to 2012. Additionally, he was President of the Kerala School in New Delhi between November 2011 and July 2012.
After relocating to Finland in 2012, he worked as a lecturer and resource person at UNESCO-affiliated institutions until December 2013. He then founded Rationalist International in Finland in December 2013 and continues to serve as its President.
In India, Edamaruku has been associated with the Indian Rationalist Association since 1984, initially as its youngest-ever General Secretary and later as its President from July 2005 onwards.
The 2012 incident
In 2012, Sanal Edamaruku investigated what was being hailed as a miracle at the Our Lady of Velankanni Church in Mumbai, where a crucifix appeared to be dripping water. Upon examination, he determined that the phenomenon was caused by capillary action—water seeping through the wall behind the crucifix, not any supernatural event. He publicly shared his findings on TV-9 and strongly criticized the Catholic Church for promoting the event as a miracle and for its hostility toward scientific reasoning.
Following his statements, church authorities demanded an apology, and some of their supporters filed formal complaints against him. Edamaruku was charged under Section 295(a) of the Indian Penal Code—India’s “blasphemy law”—which criminalises “deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings.” His legal team has challenged the constitutionality of the law, arguing that it violates the right to free speech. Denied anticipatory bail, Edamaruku eventually left India and sought refuge in Europe.
In his interview with The Humanist, Edamaruku elaborated on his work, the criminal charges, and also outlined the danger posed by the blasphemy law. Edamaruku opines that India’s blasphemy laws, rooted in colonial-era legislation, have often been misused to target intellectuals and artists who challenge religious ideas. These laws allow anyone to file a complaint claiming their religious sentiments have been hurt, leading to arrests even before a proper trial. He believes the real threat lies not in the final verdict but in the prolonged legal process, where accused individuals can be detained and harassed for years before being acquitted.
“The Vatican keeps mum even though more than 10,000 signatories to a London-based human rights petition—some of them prominent personalities—have demanded a clarification from the Vatican as well as from the Catholic Church of India. However, the auxiliary bishop of Mumbai made official statements in the press saying that he publicly “rejoiced” and praised the “courageous” Catholic laity leaders who had filed police complaints against me,” Edamaruku said when questioned about the Vatican’s stance on the issue. He added that the Church vehemently refuted his charges and refused to allow Edamaruku’s organisation to take a closer look to prove their claims.
Edamaruku wasn’t the only one to face the ire of Christian groups and the Church. Director Vinod Pande’s 2005 movie Sins faced protest from Christian groups. Catholic Bishops wanted the movie to be banned. However, Pande refused to back out or bow down to the Christian groups. Christians launched a protest against Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code.
The Church has always been intolerant of rationalism and science. Even Galileo was hounded for his heliocentric views and tried by the Catholic Church. Galileo was tried by the Catholic Church in 1633 for supporting the heliocentric view that the Earth revolves around the sun, which the Church considered heretical. Although he had been warned in 1616 not to defend this idea, he continued discussing it in his writings.
