Kerala nun case: Rape-accused bishop Franco Mulakkal bail extended till June 7

Thiruvananthapuram, May 10: The bail period of Bishop Franco Mulakkal, the priest from Kerala accused of repeatedly raping and sexually assaulting a nun between 2014 and 2016, was extended till June 7 by the Pala court on Friday.

The probe team under Vaikkom DSP K Subhash submitted the charge sheet against the bishop before the court on Thursday.

The trial in the case will be shifted to Kottayam district court after the accused appears before the court on June 7 and receives the copy of chargesheet.

In her complaint to the Kottayam Police in June, the nun had alleged that Bishop Mulakkal raped her at a guest house in Kuravilangad in May 2014 and later sexually exploited her on several occasions.

He lead special prayers at a church in Kottayam before heading to Pala court.

The nun said she had to approach the police as the church authorities did not act on her repeated complaints against the clergyman. However, the bishop has denied the charges as "baseless and concocted," insisting she levelled those as the Catholic order had rejected her demand for favours.

The Kerala High Court had granted bail to the 54-year-old Catholic priest on October 15 on conditions that he does not come to Kerala except for appearing before the probe officer once in two weeks on Saturdays, and should surrender his passport before the court. This condition was applicable till the chargesheet was filed on April 9.

According to reports, investigating officer K Subash, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Vaikom, submitted the chargesheet before the Judicial First Class Magistrate, Pala. The chargesheet has more than 100 pages.