Kerala nun rape accused Bishop Franco Mulakkal on Tuesday has tested positive for COVID-19, a day after his bail was cancelled by a Kerala court and a non-bailable warrant was issued against him, reports said.
The former Jalandhar bishop, who is facing rape allegations levelled against him by a Kerala nun, did not appear in court on Monday, with his counsel informing that he has was in self-quarantine due to contact with a COVID-19 infected person.
Mulakkal had also failed to appear in court in a previous hearing set for July 1, with his counsel claiming that the bishop was in a COVID-19 containment zone in Jalandhar, Punjab.
The prosecution, however, said on Monday that the area where the accused lived in had not been a containment zone, claiming that this was a deliberate attempt to delay the trial.
Following this, the court cancelled his bail and issued a non-bailable warrant against him.
On July 7, the Kerala High Court had dismissed a petition filed by Mulakkal that sought to discharge him from the rape case, which was registered in Kottayam district on the basis of the nun’s complaint.
However, the court dismissed his plea, admitting the prosecution argument that there was prima facie evidence against Mulakkal.
In her complaint to the police in June, 2018, the nun had alleged that she was subjected to sexual abuse by the bishop between 2014 and 2016.
Mulakkal was arrested by the Special Investigation Team which probed the case and was charged with wrongful confinement, rape, unnatural sex and criminal intimidation.
(With inputs from agencies)
