A group of progressive Catholic religious priests, nuns and laity has mounted pressure on Vatican to act against an Indian Bishop accused of raping a Catholic nun.
They have urged the Apostolic nuncio to India Archbishop Giambattista Diquattro and President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) Cardinal Oswald Gracias to advise Pope Francis to relieve the accused bishop of his pastoral responsibilities to pave way for an impartial probe.
The police in Sothern Indian state of Kerala are probing alleged charges of rape and unnatural sex against Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mulakkal, based in Punjab.
The survivor in her complaint accused the prelate of raping her 13-times between 2014–2016 in a convent in Kerala where she was superior. Both the nun and the prelate are from Kerala.
She belongs to a local congregation of women working in Jalandhar diocese under the direct control of the accused prelate.
The 167 member group led by Indian Christian Women Movement consisting nearly 70 nuns 15 priests and the laity exhorted the Church leadership to prove its “zero tolerance to sex abuse” in the Church with the removal of the prelate from all pastoral responsibilities.
The group sent separate letters to this effect to the nuncio and Cardinal Gracias appealing them to “…please advise Pope Francis to relieve the bishop concerned of his pastoral responsibilities, so that the Church is seen to actually practice the ‘zero tolerance’ it professes to observe in abuse cases”.
According to them continuance of the accused prelate in his office “will erode the faith of the people in the credibility of the Church to implement its policy of zero tolerance and act justly in abuse matters”.
The group also requested Bishops in India to publicise and create adequate awareness about the CBCI Guidelines to deal with Sexual Harassment in the Workplace 2017 and institute the structures and procedures described therein without further delay.
