The death of a Father

A RAPE case, an aggrieved nun, a powerful bishop, the death of a witness — the trappings of a cheap thriller, only if it wasn’t stark real. The 62-year-old Father Kuriakose Kattuthara, who dared depose against Bishop Franco Mulakkal two months ago in the rape case of a nun, has been found dead at his residence on the premises of a Dasuya church. The death of a crucial witness, the circumstances leading to it, and the timing, do raise suspicions, pending the postmortem report and detailed investigations. 

A few days earlier, on October 17, a spirited reception was accorded to Bishop Franco by the Jalandhar Diocese upon his return from Kerala on conditional bail. His supporters came out in droves; among them a large number of dutiful nuns. The current administrative Bishop went out of his way to make him comfortable, even offering him the Bishop’s chair. The Bishop House was slathered with happy posters; the road jammed as hundreds sang the Lord’s praise. There were garlands, a rain of rose petals, and a smiling Bishop Franco. Hallelujah! Such fervent outpourings and solidarity for a man who was in jail for over three weeks; a man not yet acquitted. It was an honour reserved for a hero, only he was no warrior returning from battlefield.  

For the sake of probity, in a case as delicate as this — the outcome may have a ponderous bearing on the Catholic Church in India — it was critical that the ‘celebrations’, if at all, were restrained, and away from the public eye; confined only to a handful who may have sworn undying allegiance. In cases, where the accused commands a powerful clout, there is always the sneaking fear that the case may be impacted. Deferential supporters may, in all such cases, influence or manipulate the truth. A man of God, who stuck his neck out for his version of the truth, is gone. Deliverance from evil is possible if justice and nothing but gospel truth is allowed to prevail.