Media release

Bengaluru, Jun 6: Three eminent Konkani Catholics who have excelled in their respective fields and in service to humankind were honored with the prestigious FKCA Awards here on Sunday, June 5.

The Lifetime Achievement Award was conferred on Fr Cedric Prakash SJ, a human rights, reconciliation and peace activist/writer while the Professional Excellence Award was presented to Justice John Michael Cunha, former judge, high court of Karnataka. The third category was the Entrepreneur/Enterprise of the Year Award which was bestowed on M/S Brilliant Printers Pvt. Ltd., Bengaluru.

Every year the awards are announced to recognize and honour the contribution of Konkani Catholics in their respective fields and to the community and the society.

Speaking at the 24th Federation Day of FKCA held at St Joseph’s Indian High School Auditorium, chief guest Justice V Gopala Gowda, former judge, Supreme Court of India said, “All religions are equal and a multi-religious country does not belong to one religion.” He further added that in the name of religion few sects have tried to create problems. “This will not be tolerated is the message to these troublemakers. I am warning them that our country has wise people, there are defenders of the constitution,” he added.

Further Justice Gowda expressed his deep pain by the way in which the constitutions judgements were “flouted and misapplied” to the current situation be it hijab or halal. He called upon all the people to be fearless and brave.

“Literacy is spreading hatred. There is a difference between literacy and education. I pray that our nation has a greater number of educated people and not just literates. It is our responsibility to ensure that the unrest is controlled and arrested for the future. Let us hope there is a change in the system, in the judiciary, in the legislative councils and in the media,” said K Jayaprakash Hegde, chairman of the Karnataka State Permanent Backward Classes Commission and former MP and state minister.

Prithvi Reddy, state convener, Aam Aadmi Party, Bengaluru, Abraham T J, president of the Karnataka Anti-Graft and Environmental Forum and Indian Christian United Forum, and Fr Robert Michael Miranda, Bishop of Gulbarga, presided over the function. Also present was Kennedy Shanthakumar, chairman of the Christian Development Council (CDC).

On the occasion, FKCA submitted a memorandum to the government on the anti-conversation ordinance and the atrocities on minorities. FKCA urged to repeal the ordinance and put a stop on the atrocities ensuring the rights enshrined in the constitution are upheld. The memorandum was handed over to K Jayaprakash Hegde.

The Federation Day event also had a special performance by young and famous artiste Remona Evette Pereira which enthralled the audience. There were also performances and dances by Kalakar Group, Pallotti Baila Group and a song by Fr Baptist Pais SVD felicitating the awardees.

FKCA which was founded in 1998 in Bangalore has grown into a giant organization with global reach. As many as 33 associations of Konkani Catholics in different parts of Bengaluru, Mysuru, Chikkamagaluru, Hassan, Shivamogga and 11 associations in other countries, including USA, UK, Canada, Kuwait, Qatar and Dubai, and Abu Dhabi in UAE are affiliated to FKCA.

The Federation works for the cause of Konkan Catholics and also in the larger interests of the community globally. FKCA today has made a strong presence by putting forth and taking up grievances of the Konkani Catholic community with several governments and a united forum in fighting for their rights.

About the awardees

The Lifetime Achievement Award: Fr Cedric Prakash S J

Fr Cedric Prakash hails from the famous Pereira and Mascarenhas family of Kankanady, Mangaluru. He is a Jesuit priest of the Gujarat Province (North-west India) and was ordained by the Bishop Ferdinand Fonseca of erstwhile Bombay on April 27, 1985 at St Peter's Church, Bandra.

His core competency is human rights. His expertise includes group/community facilitation, strategic planning, and evaluation; institutional mapping; advocacy, conflict resolution, and peace-building. He is a prolific writer and poet, contributing regularly to newspapers, magazines, and journals in India and abroad.

He has received a number of awards:

• The President of India conferred the Kabir Puraskar award for the promotion of Communal Harmony and Peace in 1995.
• The Anubhai Chimanlal Nagarika Puraskar award was conferred to him in 1996 by The Mayor or Ahmedabad for his contribution to the city.
• In 2003, the Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award for Humanitarian Work by the Indian Muslim Council, USA.
• In 2004, the Fr Parmananda Divarkar Award for promoting dialogue for peace and inter-community harmony.
• In October 2018, the Loyola Press Chicago published a brilliant coffee-table-style book ‘Sharing the Wisdom of Time’ by Pope Francis and friends. One of Fr Prakash’s real-life stories is featured in it.
• In 2006, Fr Prakash was named Chevalier of the Legion of Honor, one of the highest French civilian awards, acknowledging his commitment to the defense and the promotion of human rights in India
• In 2006, he received the Minorities Rights Award by the National Commission for Minorities of the Government of India
• The Marquette University in Wisconsin, USA honored him as the Wade Chair Scholar for the academic year 2009 – 2010

Fr Prakash was one of the recipients of Mother Teresa Awards for Social Justice in 2013

Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020, by the Delhi Minorities Commission; the Fr Luis Carreno Award in December 2021, by the Indian Catholic Press Association (ICPA) for his prophetic writings.

He is the recipient of several international and national awards including the ‘Legion d’ Honneur’ from the President of France

Professional Excellence Award: Justice John Michael Cunha

Justice John Michael Cunha was born in Gurpur, Kaikamba about 18 kilometers from Mangaluru. Michael enrolled as an advocate and practised on the civil side in Mangaluru under the name Manu Associates.

Till 2002, he was an advocate at the Karnataka High Court. He had a direct appointment as a district and sessions judge in May, 2002. He served in the courts of Bengaluru, Bellary and Dharwad and also as principal judge, family court, Bengaluru.

• In 2013, he was appointed as secretary to the Chief Justice and Registrar (Vigilance) of the High Court.
• In 2015, he was appointed as the Registrar General of the Karnataka High Court.
• In 2016, Justice Cunha was appointed as a judge in the Karnataka High Court.
• In 2021, he retired from the Karnataka High Court upon superannuation.

He also served as a president of the Karnataka Judges Association.

He is presently serving as an arbitrator, Arbitration Centre, Bengaluru and resource person, Karnataka Judicial Academy, Bengaluru.

Justice Cunha earned a name and fame not only in the Uma Bharti case, but also in a number of cases pertaining to family court, during his term as a judge there.

He is also known as the bravest judge in the judiciary for his rare courage which led to the unseating and incarceration of two sitting chief ministers by his independent and uncompromising decisions as a judge.

Justice Cunha has disposed of 216 cases, arising from the special court set up to deal with criminal cases against MPs and MLAs in Karnataka.

Best Enterprise of the Year: Brilliant Printers Pvt. Ltd. Bangalore

In 1970, Late A V Rego planted the seed of this enterprise in a 100 sq ft rented office in the busy Chickpet area in the Central Business District with a modest treadle machine.

His vision, hard work, dedication, belief, and passion for printing, enabled Brilliant Printers to reach where it stands today. Under the guidance of Irene Rego, chairperson, the company runs on the able shoulders of its directors - Peter Anil, Paul Sunil and Thomas Manil.

Brilliant is Karnataka’s largest establishment for the printing of books with a capacity to print more than two lakh books a day on a 1.5 lakh sq. ft area, on an 8-acre facility with 500 employees.

PrintWeek, an international magazine, describes Brilliant Printers as a world-class print house, pioneers of change, and an asset to customers by adopting the latest technologies and operational excellence.

The organization contributes to the environment through its Green Policy by conservation of waste with state-of-the-art effluent and sewage treatment plants, rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge, fire hydrant systems, solar rooftop, etc.

The client portfolio spans a diverse range of reputed international publishers, corporates, religious, Government institutions to MNCs. Brilliant - Prints and export to more than 70 Countries. Bibles are printed in over 50 Languages.

Accolades and awards

Star Printer of SAARC nations, National Star award for best printing on indigenous paper, Gold excellence award for web o?set soft bound printing, Silver Excellence award in offset printing category, PrintWeek SME printing company - 2016, PrintWeek Post-Press company - 2017.