Bengaluru, 7 Feb

Cardinal Poola Anthony, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Hyderabad, has been elected as the new President of the CBCI during its 37th general body meeting held here on Saturday at the St John’s Medical College here.

Cardinal Poola Anthony succeeds Archbishop Andrews Thazhath.

On 19 November 2020, Pope Francis appointed Cardinal Anthony as the Metropolitan Archbishop of Hyderabad. He was proclaimed Cardinal by Pope Francis during the Consistory held on 27 August 2022, and was assigned the title of Ss. Protomartiri a Via Aurelia Antica, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) said in a statement.

"With his election as the President of the CBCI, Cardinal Poola Anthony assumes leadership of the Catholic Church in India at a crucial moment, bringing with him decades of pastoral experience, administrative leadership, and a strong commitment to the Church’s mission in the service of the faith, justice, and human dignity," the statement said.

Cardinal Poola assumes leadership of the coordinating body of Catholic bishops in India at a time of social, pastoral, and constitutional challenges facing the Church and the nation.