Preaching Jesus was breaching Covid rules

An open-air preacher arrested for preaching on Sutton High Street, South London on Easter Sunday 2020 has had his fine for breaching Covid rules increased by magistrates.

An officer reportedly told Andrew Sathiyavan, a full-time voluntary worker for Gospel Light Ministries, that preaching in the street was ‘unacceptable’. Police handcuffed him, took him to a police station and fined him £400.

On appeal, City of London magistrates not only refused to overturn the fine, but increased it by £100. He was also ordered to pay £300 in costs and a £32 victim surcharge. The judge ruled that street preaching was not a valid reason for being out on the streets, because Sathiyavan could have streamed it online.

Under The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) Regulations 2020 – the Covid rules in place at the time – no one was permitted to leave home without reasonable excuse. However, the government did not provide a definitive list of permitted activities that amounted to ‘reasonable excuse’.

Christian Concern is now supporting Sathiyavan in a further appeal.

Sathiyavan said: ‘Gospel preaching is my work. I tell people about the good news of Jesus Christ, which preachers have done for centuries in this country. I seek to reach people living in fear and without hope.’

Dr Martin Parsons, a Christian theologian and expert witness, backed Sathiyavan’s appeal to magistrates. In written evidence, he said: ‘There is therefore a potentially significant conflict between this aspect of freedom of religion both in terms of how it has been developed in British constitutional history and the interpretation of current coronavirus regulations by the Metropolitan Police.’

The case highlights the inconsistent approach of the police and the courts to open-air preaching. In a similar incident in November 2020, Sathiyavan received a £400 police fine, which was later dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service for lack of evidence.