Kerala’s Acourt on Friday acquitted Roman Catholic Bishop Franco Mulakkal of raping a nun at a monastery in the state, citing a variety of reasons, including inconsistencies in the victim’s account of the incident and a lack of conclusive evidence. evidence to support the prosecution case.
Murakar, 57, is accused of repeatedly raping nuns during a visit to a monastery in the Kottayam district between 2014 and 2016, when he was bishop of the Roman Catholic diocese of Jalandhar. The complainant is a member of the Missionaries of Jesus, a parish congregation affiliated with the Diocese of Jalandhar.
In the order, additional session judge G Gopakumar acquitted the bishop, saying the victim’s claim that she had been raped 13 times under duress could not be relied upon in her separate testimony.
“The victim’s statement was inconsistent… Given the inconsistency of the victim’s account, this court finds that she cannot be classified as a good witness. She also cannot be classified as a fully reliable witness,” the order said. The court also said she expressed grievances to her fellow sisters that the accused took retaliatory measures for not giving in to his sexual desires, and her version was before the court where she was forced to have sex with the accused 13 times.
The judgment further stated that the prosecution failed to give appropriate
Interpretation of version inconsistencies.
“Apart from the victim’s testimony, there is no solid evidence to support the prosecution’s case. The police were unable to seize the victim’s mobile phone, which could have provided some information on the alleged vulgar message sent by the defendant. Explanation for not producing the phone. Totally unsatisfactory,” the order read.
“This is a case of mixed grains. It is impossible to separate the chaff from the chaff. The victim’s version has exaggerations and embellishments. She also made every effort to hide certain facts,” it further said.
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