Bishop Mulakkal arrested
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Family members carry the coffin of Spanish dictator Francisco Franco out of the basilica of the Valle de los Caidos (Valley of the Fallen) mausoleum in San Lorenzo del Escorial on October 24, 2019.
Tripunithura (Kerala): Kerala Police arrested Bishop Franco Mulakkal, accused of raping a nun, after much drama and suspense around questioning him for a third consecutive day on Friday, amidst wide public and media attention.
The arrest was registered in the evening on Friday which was confirmed by special investigation team head and SP Kottayam Hari Sankar to mediapersons around 7 pm.
Mulakkal has been accused of repeatedly sexually abusing the nun between 2014 and 2016. Nuns have been protesting in Kochi for the past 14 days demanding his arrest which also drew many socio-cultural activist groups into the strike tent.
The bishop, who headed the Roman Catholic Diocese in Jalandhar, Punjab, was earlier questioned for seven hours each on two days starting Wednesday near here at a Crime Branch office. In all the interrogation close to 24 hours
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan being away for medical treatment in the US, Industries Minister E.P. Jayarajan, the de facto Chief Minister, speaking to the media, said that the probe was advancing in the right direction.
"The state government has always been with the victim and whosoever does a wrong -- the wrongdoer will be taken to task," he said.
Kottayam police chief Hari Sankar, who leads the police probe team had told the media earlier on Friday that at the moment they were unable to say anything about the arrest.
"It will only be decided after the interrogation is over. It is completely the prerogative of the investigating officer. And there is no need for him to take any permission from anyone. We have already consulted legal experts," said Hari Sankar .
He had also met Inspector General of Police Vijay Sakhre, who is heading the probe team.
For the past three days, K. Subash, the deputy superintendent of police, was the investigating officer. He was also the first one to meet the bishop when he questioned him in Jalandhar in August.
The Kerala High Court had also posted for hearing the bishop's anticipatory bail plea on September 25 without issuing any interim orders
An FIR was registered against the bishop and a 114-page detailed statement was taken from the nun and other inmates of the convent.