A Billion-Rupee Plot and a Question of Trust: Mumbai Catholics Challenge a Church Property Sale Notice

• A public notice advertised St Stephen’s Church property in south Mumbai for sale or redevelopment
• The property on Cumballa Hill is valued at about one billion rupees (US$11.2 million)
• A Catholic lay group sent a legal notice to Archbishop John Rodrigues
• The archdiocese said it was seeking bids to redevelop an adjacent property it owns

Catholics in Mumbai challenged the Bombay Archdiocese in November 2025 over property linked to St Stephen’s Church on Cumballa Hill in south Mumbai, valued at about one billion rupees (US$11.2 million), UCA News reported on November 25, 2025.

A parish priest published a public notice on November 21 advertising the property. Three days later the Association of Concerned Christians sent a legal notice to Archbishop John Rodrigues. The archdiocese disputed the description of what it was doing. “This is…seeking bids to redevelop an adjacent property that it owns,” spokesperson Nigel Barrett said.

The lay group argued that church leaders do not own the property but hold it in trust. “The archdiocesan officials have no right to sell the property as they are not its owners but only trustees,” said Melwyn Fernandes, secretary of the association. It also said: “This property is donated by the Catholic faithful with the intention for perpetual religious and community use.”

The Mumbai archdiocese, covering the city and suburbs, has more than 525,000 Catholics, making it India’s most populous archdiocese, and holds valuable urban property.

The dispute centres on a question Jamaican congregations also face: when members gave money or land to a church, did they give it to the leadership to manage as it sees fit, or for a specific, lasting purpose? The answer usually lies in the trust deed or the terms of the gift. Churches considering redevelopment of valuable urban land in Kingston or elsewhere will avoid much conflict if they check those terms first, explain the plan openly and show how members’ original intentions will be honoured.

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