"Invisible hands" behind Sister Abhaya Case: Court

Kochi, Jun 4 (UNI) Ernakulam Chief Judicial Magistrate today observed that certain ''invisible hands'' were still trying to scuttle the Sister Abhaya murder case.

Observing that these forces were trying to influence the investigating agencies and the government officials, including the Chief Chemical Examiner and forensic experts, CJM P D Sarangadharan said the investigation agency was not able to locate those who were able to influence the officials.

The Court opined that though the CBI had taken over the case on March 29, 1993, it failed to make any breakthrough into the mysterious death of a nun, Sister Abhaya, even after 15 years.

The Court made these observations while hearing the petitions filed by Mr Thomas, father of the victim Sister Abhaya, seeking the progress of the investigation.

It also directed the CBI to report the progress of investigation every three months before the Court.

In the other petition filed by activist Jomon Puthenpurakkal, who sought inclusion of Dr C Radhakrishnan, a retired police surgeon who had conducted the post-mortem of the body of Abhaya and Dr P Babu, who was the head of the department of forensic medicine, is in the list of acussed.

The petitioner contended that they had manipulated the original workbook register.

The court directed the CBI to include these aspects also while inspecting the case.

Sister Abhaya, an inmate of Pious X hostel near Kottayam was found dead in the well of the convent in 1992.

The 15-year-old case was back in the limelight in April after a newspaper reported that Abhaya's medical reports had been tampered with at the Chemical Examiners Laboratory in Thiruvananthapuram.

UNI