Animal activist hauls former principal of St Xavier’s College, Fr Frazer Mascarenhas, to police station for allegedly mistreating old dog at Bandra’s St Peter’s Church
An ageing dog is at the centre of a bitter fight between a parishioner and a well-known priest at St Peter’s Church in Bandra. The parishioner, Sarina Lopez (55), who is an animal activist and volunteer with In Defence of Animals (IDA), has taken Fr Frazer Mascarenhas, former principal of St Xavier’s College, to the police station, accusing him of hitting the dog, Jimmy.
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Fr Frazer Mascarenhas, the priest of St Peter’s Church in Bandra, has been accused of hitting the dog (right)
“A happy, healthy dog has become emaciated and is now limping because the church authorities have been ill-treating him,” said Lopez.
Father Frazer has, however, denied mistreating the dog. “I did not hit it or act violently in any way. I just shooed the dog away from the church building. After the complaint, I was called to the police station and clarified the matter there as well. Sarina Lopez is making false allegations against me,” said Father Mascarenhas.
‘Church is starving dog’
Sarina claims that the dog has been living inside the church premises for nearly 12 years. Sarina told mid-day that on August 1, she saw Fr Frazer hit the dog and shoo it out of the church after which she filed a complaint with the Bandra police. On August 8, she also met Additional Commissioner of Police (West) C Dorjee on the issue.
Sarina said the dog had even been locked up in the church loft. She said he was being starved and that a friend had heard scratching noises coming from the loft inside the church.
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She further alleged that recently she went to the church to feed Jimmy but Father Frazer refused to let her inside. “When I asked him to go get Jimmy down, he refused again. I told that I would call the cops and when I reached the gate that leads to the loft, I saw Jimmy coming down with one of his men.” Father Frazer, on the other hand, said “Dogs don’t follow rules; they go wherever they wish to. They go away for days and then come back when they wish to. All these claims are baseless.”
St Peter’s parishioners seem divided on the issue. “The church has cats and dogs walking in and out all the time. But, this particular dog, Jimmy, has become a problem lately. He pees and poops inside the church. This cannot be allowed,” said Rita D’Almeida, a regular at the church. Another regular at the church, on the condition of anonymity said, “The dog has been here for a while and has never been a problem. He comes and goes as he wishes. Now that he is old he comes and sits under the cross. He is vaccinated and not dangerous.”
Another parishioner, Merck D’Silva, said, “It’s a dicey situation. Both parties are right and wrong, but I wouldn’t want to take sides.”
Police says
Senior Police Inspector Pandit Thakre, of Bandra police station, said, “There is nothing that needs to be done. The woman is a little disturbed and gets angry about little things. She also yells at BMC officials and has been barred from the ward office.”
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