DIMAPUR — The Nagaland Transparency Public
Rights Advocacy and Direct Action Organisation (NTPRADAO) has asked Nagaland
government to take immediate steps towards bringing back the deported pastor of
Spirit of Faith Church, John Roughton.
In a letter addressed to Governor La Ganesan, the
organisation stated that Roughton and his wife Zhepitoli Zhimomi were returning
to India from the US on October 31 when he was detained for 45 minutes at Indira
Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi.
“Subsequently, he was deported back to New York, USA, on the
same flight, forcing him to leave his wife behind at the Indira Gandhi
International Airport in New Delhi.
“Pastor John Roughton is a law-abiding Overseas Citizen of
India and has been living a peaceful family life in Dimapur, Nagaland, with his
three children for around 3 decades,” the letter read.
Condemning the “unethical deportation,” NTPRADAO stated that
such “unprecedented folly” belittles the secular fabric and essence of India.
“Hence, your state government must take immediate steps to
push the case to the level of the Prime Minister, Home Minister, and, most
importantly, the External Affairs Minister for smoothly bringing back pastor
John Roughton to India,” it stated.
