The Church of North India’s Bishop in Delhi, the Rt. Rev. Sunil Kumar Singh, wrote to the members of his diocesan synod announcing he was standing down for health reasons. A member of the CNI executive synod told the Church of England Newspaper the bishop’s letter cited ill health for his retirement seven years ahead of schedule, and noted his request had been approved. The Bishop in Amritsar, the Rt. Rev. Pradeep Samantroy will assume oversight of the diocese pending the election of a new bishop. However, the Indian newspaper The Hindu reports the bishop stepped down in response to charges of misconduct. It cited an unnamed member of the synod as saying: “The Bishop had taken over in 2007 and still had seven years of service left. He was forced to resign following complaints of financial irregularities and misconduct.” The former bishops of Pune, Gujarat and Bombay are currently under investigation for fraud by the Bombay courts, the Bishop in Lucknow was deposed from office in January 2014 for fraud and is facing criminal charges, while the Bishop in Bhopal in 2012 was questioned by police over charges of fraud and intimidation.
