Bail hearing of bishop deferred

KOCHI: The Kerala high court on Tuesday deferred hearing a petition seeking anticipatory bail, filed by Jalandhar bishop Franco Mulakkal who is accused of raping a nun, to September 25 when it will hear the version of the police.

Mulakkal is expected to appear before the Kerala police on Wednesday for questioning.

The bishop, who recently handed over his duties as the bishop of the Jalandhar diocese, on Tuesday, moved the high court for anticipatory bail, claiming that the allegations against him were a “cooked up story to wreak vengeance”.

He also wrote to Pope Francis on Monday, offering to step aside temporarily.

When the plea came up for the hearing before Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan, the petitioner did not seek any interim relief to thwart his possible arrest.

Citing convention, legal experts said police may not arrest Mulakkal since his anticipatory bail plea is pending. However, the police can still arrest him if it has sufficient evidence.

Mulakkal was finally issued summons to appear before the police amid mounting pressure for action against him following protests which are ongoing by nuns of the Missionaries of Jesus and members of various churches in Kochi.

In his plea, the 54-year-old clergyman has claimed the accusations by the nun, serving in a congregation under the Jalandhar diocese, is “wholly concocted and cooked up only to wreak vengeance for the actions taken by him on various complaints received against her”.

In June, the 43-year-old nun, a mother superior, had complained to the police that Mulakkal had raped her 13 times between 2014 and 2016.

(With PTI inputs)