The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed Bishop Franco Mulakkal to face trial as it dismissed his plea seeking discharge in the rape case lodged against him by a nun, saying that there is no merit in his petition.
Mulakkal, rape-accused and former bishop of Jalandhar, had appeared before the court in Kerala's Kottayam for the beginning of the procedures ahead of the start of a trial in the case.
In a complaint to the police, Kattuthara's brother Jose Kurian said his brother had often told him and other family members that he was being threatened by the bishop and his people.
He had testified against Franco Mulakkal and has been facing threats for speaking against him ever since.
Mulakkal, who headed the Diocese of Jalandhar before stepping aside last month, has been accused of raping a nun. He remained in jail for over three weeks before getting conditional bail on October 15.
The 54-year-old clergyman was produced before the court after the period of his judicial custody ended on Saturday.
The Kerala High Court will hear his bail plea later in the day.
The Bishop was brought to the magistrate court around 1.15 pm amid tight security. His lawyers moved the application, submitting that the clergyman was arrested after a three-day-long interrogation by the probe team.
He is under observation in the cardiology section of the college after his blood pressure shot up, His ECG and other cardiac related tests are being performed at the hospital.
Earlier in the day, Bishop Mulakkal was questioned by the Kerala police for the third consecutive day on Friday over allegations of rape and unnatural sex levelled by a nun.
Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Emeritus of the Archdiocese of Bombay Agnelo Rufino Gracias as the Apostolic administrator of the diocese of Jalandhar with immediate effect.
The 54-year-old clergyman was questioned by Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash, who heads the Special Investigation Team which is probing this case.
The Kerala High Court on Tuesday had agreed to hear the anticipatory bail plea of the accused bishop, on September 25.
The bail plea came ahead of Mulakkal's appearance before a Kerala Police probe team on Wednesday.
The bail plea sought by the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Jalandhar would be heard by Justice V Raja Vijayaraghavan later on Tuesday.
Sources said that the church representative from India is in Vatican to discuss the issue is expecting intervention in the coming days.
The nun had recently sought urgent intervention of the Vatican for justice and demanded the bishop’s removal as the head of the Jalandhar diocese, questioning why the church was “closing its eyes to the truth” when she mustered courage to make public her sufferings.
A Kerala Police official told reporters that a notice may be issued to Bishop Franco Mulakkal of Jalandhar diocese to appear before the investigating team.
Swara Bhasker lambasted Hate Story filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri for his hateful and insensitive tweet targeting her for speaking on the Kerala nun abuse case.
Panaji: The Goa Congress has criticised central minister Nitin Gadkari's controversial comment wherein he raked up the religion of two Bangladeshis who were arrested for raping a nun in West Bengal last month.On Thursday, while
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