The Kerala High Court rejected bail plea of Bishop Franco Mulakkal on Wednesday, October 3. The Bishop from Jalandhar has been accused of raping and sexually assaulting a nun at a convent in Kottayam for two years.
The bail application read that the allegations levelled by the nun are "wholly concocted and cooked up only to wreak vengeance."
Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan V rejected the bail plea on the grounds that the evidence against the bishop was 'true and serious.'
The Bishop's counsel suggested to the court to approve his bail plea since he was questioned intensively before and after his arrest. He went on to say that the nun accused the Bishop of rape only after being subjected to a medical examination, reports TOI.
The defendant also presented a video of the bishop visiting the nun's house for a function the day after she alleged that he first raped her.
Bishop Mulakkal was arrested on September 21 after a month of protests by nuns all over the state. He is the first bishop in the country to be jailed over rape charges, according to Hindustan Times.
The prosecutor later said that the details regarding the crime were recorded in a statement under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
There have been four cases filed at different police station against the bishop for trying to intimidate and influence witnesses. The DGP, who argued against the defendant, said that if the bishop was released on bail, he could talk to witnesses and disrupt investigations of the case.
Earlier, the Vatican temporarily relieved Bishop Mulakkal from the diocese to focus on the investigation.
