The bail of Franco Mulakkal, former Bishop of Jalandhar, has been cancelled. He has been accused of raping a nun and a non-bailable arrest warrant had been issued against him. This cancellation was ordered yesterday (July 13) by a special court in Kottayam, Kerala.
Public prosecutor Jithesh Babu informed additional district judge G Gopakumar that a reason cited by the accused to avoid appearing before the court on July 1 was that his area was in a COVID-19 containment zone. For that he had been denied permission to travel.
The public prosecutor produced documents that proved that this claim of being in a containment zone was a lie. The former Bishop’s house was not in any containment zone.
Now Mulakkal’s lawyer seems to have tested positive for COVID, but that did not impress the judge. He said that since his first claim was a lie, the court cannot accept the latest excuse. At that the court cancelled the bail and has posted the next date of hearing for August 13.
– India Legal Bureau