Kerala nun rape case: Bishop Franco Mulakkal moves discharge plea in SC

New Delhi: Bishop Franco Mulakkal, accused of raping a senior Kerala nun, has approached the Supreme Court claiming innocence and seeking to discharge him without a trial in the matter.

Mulakkal, in his petition, claimed that he is "innocent" and was "falsely implicated" in the case by the complainant after he questioned the financial dealings of the alleged victim nun.

The accused moved the apex court after the Kerala High Court dismissed his petition, seeking directions to discharge him without a trial in the rape case. Earlier, a trial court had also rejected his bail plea.

Mulakkal, 56, was arrested on rape charges on September 21, 2018, after a nun in the Missionaries of Jesus congregation filed a complaint against him accusing the Bishop of raping her 13 times between 2014 and 2016 in Kottayam in Kerala.

The Kerala Police had filed a 1,400-page chargesheet against him in the case.

According to the prosecution, the charge sheet filed against him named 83 witnesses, including Cardinal of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, three bishops, 11 priests, and many nuns.