By Matters India Reporter

Mangaluru, August 9, 2023: The contribution of Jesuit Father Jerome D’Souza as one of the architects of the Indian Constitution was recalled at a function in Mangaluru, southern India.

Father D’Souza (1897-1977), a native of Mangaluru, was a member of India’s Constituent Assembly that met 1946-1950 in New Delhi to draft the country’s Constitution that came into effect on January 26, 1950.

Ronald Fernandes, a senior journalist and member of Karnataka Public Service Commission, says the Church and Jesuits in India have a lot to be proud of Father D’Souza, “a richly talented person” whose contribution to the making of the Republic of India touched the life of every Indian citizen.

“He was the leading Christian leader in the Constituent Assembly and understood the need for a democratic, secular, socialist and sovereign nation,” the journalist said while addressing a function August 7 in Mangaluru where a book titled, “Pride of Kanara; True Son of India, Fr Jerome D’Souza SJ” was released.

Bishop Peter Paul D’Souza of Mangalore, who released the book, hailed Father D’Souza as “a great patriot” and a man with “a rare combination of religions and politics.”

The bishop also said that knowing the great personalities of a region is equivalent to knowing its cultural treasures. “There was a need to inform Father Jerome D’Souza’s achievements to the world as he brought honour to the region, Mangaluru and Mulki,” he said.

The Jesuit was “a great patriot, and he fought for the rights of minorities,” the prelate said and added that the new book “holds a mirror to many interesting facts” of Father D’Souza.

The book, written by Edmund Frank, a professor of the college, was published by St Aloysius Prakashana, the college’s publishing unit, reports Mangalorean.com.

On the occasion, Bishop Saldanha unveiled a portrait of Father D’Souza by John Chandran, a faculty member of Mangaluru’s St Aloysius High School.

College principal Jesuit Father Praveen Martis said Father D’Souza was an alumnus who rose to national and international fame. “Father Jerome’s contribution as a member of the Constituent Assembly in securing fundamental rights and minority rights was immense,” he added.

Father Martis congratulated Frank for taking the effort to write the book in a language and style easily understood by the readers.

Fernandes, the author, said he knew Father D’Souza during his master’s studies at Chennai’s Loyola College 1971-1973. He recalled the Jesuit narrating to him during their daily evening walks his experiences in the Constituent Assembly and at the General Assembly of the United Nations Organisation during 1949-1957.

Quoting former Prime Minister of India Morarji Desai, the professor said Father D’Souza was a veteran educationist who strived to create an atmosphere for national integration and helped minorities join the mainstream.

He also pointed out that the Indian government honored Father D’Souza posthumously with a commemorative postage stamp of two-rupee denomination on his birth centenary in 1997.

Sister Maria Shamitha, head of the Apostolic Carmel congregation’s Karnataka province, said the Jesuit had played “a vital role in the debates on Minority Rights and Fundamental Rights” with his far-sighted vision that could foresee the country’s future.

Most importantly, we feel proud that this great personality was the son of our own Konkani soil, from our own diocese of Mangalore, who hailed from Mulki town in particular,” Sister Shamitha added.

She said the author has taken “immense trouble” to gather information about the Jesuit through research.

“We understand the dedication and hard work of the process of bringing out this type of book. Certainly, this book will be of great value for those who read it as it contains material with interesting facts and insights that one does not know,” she added.

Father D’Souza was born August 6, 1897, to Sabastian and Seraphina D’Souza in Mulki, a remote town which lies on the banks of river Shambhavi in Dakshina Kannada district.

He completed his primary education in Mulki and joined St Aloysius High School in Mangalore along with his elder brother Boniface. After matriculation Jerome joined St Aloysius College and completed the first year of Intermediate studies. He then joined St Joseph’s College in Trichy, Tamil Nadu, managed by the French Jesuits.

Jerome completed Bachelor of Arts in English Honors from Presidency College in Chennai and worked as lecturer in English. Impressed with the French Jesuits’ work among the poor in Tamil Nadu, he joined the Society of Jesus in 1921. In 1928, he was sent to Belgium for theology studies and was ordained a priest in Belgium on August 30, 1931.

He returned to India in 1933 and rejoined the English faculty at Trichy St Joseph’s College. In 1935, he was appointed the first Indian principal of the college. He got acquainted with Indian independence struggle leaders C Rajagopalachari and Jawahar Lal Nehru. In 1938. He was appointed the first Indian rector.

When the Second World War broke out in 1939, Father D’Souza was appointed to the District War Committee and as a member of the Advisory Board of All India Radio. He was invited to speak in public places to motivate the people and keep their morale high.

In 1942, he was transferred to Madras (now Chennai) as rector and principal of Loyola College. He was also appointed to the Syndicate of the Madras University. Rajagopalachari proposed Father D’Souza’s name as a candidate for the Madras Legislative Assembly, after obtaining his superiors’ permission. He was elected in 1946. It was then he was elected to the Constituent Assembly as a Christian representative.

He is a signatory to the original copy of the Constitution of India. The Jesuit was also a member of the first Interim Parliament until 1952.