Kerala nun writes dispatch to Vatican, accuses house of worship of silence on rape allegation against Bishop

A 43-year-old nun in Kerala has warned the Roman Catholic church its alleged silence on her allegation that a bishop raped her multiple times will hurt its credibility.

The nun alleges Franco Mulakkal, 54, the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Jalandhar, assaulted her after summoning her on the pretext of discussing an important issue in 2014. He later allegedly raped her 13 times in the next two years.

News agency ANI on Tuesday reported the nun has written a seven-page letter dated September 8 to the Apostolic Nunciature– the representative of the Holy See in India–appealing for justice.

“I feel this kind of silence on the part of the Church authorities and protection of those who commit the crime may create a situation where the Church loses its credibility before society,” she wrote.

“It will have a very adverse effect on women in the Indian Church that they have no other option than to react in a manner that safeguards their dignity as human persons even at the cost of losing their Catholic faith.”

The plea is also marked to 21 other high ranking authorities of the Roman Catholic Church in India.

Nuns in Kochi, for four days, have been staging a protest against the accused Bishop, demanding action against the prelate. The protestors claim that they have not received police help as well as from the church authorities and the government. They allege that the probe is being delayed as the accused is an influential authority in the Roman Catholic Church and is not a layman.