A day after the resignation of bishop Franco Mulakkal as Jalandhar bishop, 'Save Our Sisters' campaigners on Friday said the survivor nun who had levelled rape charges against him would continue her fight for justice through the legal system.
Pope Francis made his first public appearance in five weeks, on the day of his discharge from the Gemelli Hospital in Rome on Sunday, March 23, 2025.
The pontiff, the first leader of the global Catholic Church from the United States, appeared for about seven minutes on Rate Field's jumbotron during the event, organized by the Chicago archdiocese and featuring several other local personalities, including Bulls announcer Chuck Swirsky.
Pope Francis, who passed away at the age of 88 in Rome on Monday, April 21, less than a day after delivering a brief Easter Sunday message in St Peter's Basilica, is remembered as a spiritual leader whose life and final moments were deeply intertwined with prayer and devotion.
'Modi's charisma may have weakened as last year's Lok Sabha poll results showed but in the eyes of the Sangh Parivar, it has not waned.' 'Minus a strong BJP government at the Centre for another decade and more, there is apprehension that an anti-Hindutva government could reverse many of the ideological gains that the Modi dispensation has achieved through its three terms,' points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Pope Francis's connection with India was marked by a mix of hopes and challenges. His long-held wish to visit the country remained unfulfilled, but he made significant contributions to the Catholic community in India, including elevating Indian figures to sainthood and appointing an Indian priest as a Cardinal. While his efforts to resolve conflicts within the Syro-Malabar Church were unsuccessful, his legacy will be remembered for his efforts to promote unity and understanding in the Catholic Church.
The school, situated in Junwani, some 60 kilometres from the district headquarters, is run by Jabalpur Diocesan Education Society of the Roman Catholic community, he said.
She alleged that she has been isolated and humiliated by fellow inmates of the convent.
Former Jalandhar bishop Franco Mulakkal, who was acquitted by a local court in Kerala last year over rape charges by a nun, met Pope Francis in Vatican last week, a church source said in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday.
World leaders and tens of thousands of faithful gathered at St Peter's Square in the Vatican City on Saturday to honor Pope Francis in a poignant farewell.
The papal conclave, the process to elect a new Pope, is set to begin on Wednesday, May 7, 2025, following Pope Francis' death. The event takes place within the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City and involves the College of Cardinals.
As the prosecution failed to produce evidence against the accused, the Additional District and Sessions Court II acquitted the Bishop.
Meanwhile, Sister Margaret of the Mercy Convent said in a press release that the nun's allegations were "totally false and malicious".
Detailing the charges of rape against the Bishop, the SOS claimed the rape case remains proved absolutely and the "abduction and attempt to murder case" of the accused Bishop stands dismissed being totally false."
Even as the victim-nun moved the high court to set aside the acquittal, the state government on Wednesday granted sanction for filing an appeal against the trial court's January 14, 2022 decision.
Pope Francis remains in critical condition with blood tests showing mild signs of kidney failure 'which is currently under control,' the Vatican said on Sunday, February 23, 2025 as the 88-year-old pontiff battles pneumonia in both his lungs.
The SOS alleged that the police failed to act in the sexual harassment charges levelled against the former Jalandhar diocese Bishop by the nun, who is also a key witness in the 'nun rape case'.
Officials in Jhansi said the nuns were detained after local Bajrang Dal activists complained that two of the women were allegedly being taken forcibly for religious conversion.
A group of nuns of Kuravilangad convent in Kottayam district of Kerala, who have been standing with the survivor in her fight, were on the verge of tears when they said they were yet to believe such a verdict came out from the court and they did not know what has happened.
Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday dismissed as wrong the allegations that two nuns belonging to a Kerala-based congregation were "attacked" during a train journey via Uttar Pradesh recently and alleged that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was "making false statements" on the issue.
Nuns doubt Bishop Franco still wields power in the diocese.
Two people have been arrested for breach of peace and misbehavior in connection with last month's alleged harassment of nuns in Jhansi, police said.
The Additional Sessions Court Judge read out to Mulakkal, who was present in the court, the charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code including the punishment for offence for rape as it commenced trial proceedings in the sensational case.
The nun had accused the clergyman of sexually assaulting her repeatedly between 2014 and 2016.
The 54-year old Mulakkal was arrested by Kerala police after intense interrogation in Kochi over the last three days.
A day after the Kerala Catholic Bishops Council (KCBC) sought a ban on staging of the Malayalam play Kakkukali, its director Job Madathil on Tuesday accused the critics of having an agenda behind their charges and urged them to watch the drama first.
Claiming innocence, the bishop also said the complaint was "nothing but a fictional story" by the nun
She alleged that by continuing in the position of Jalandhar diocese Bishop, Franco Mulakkal and his close associates "are using the wealth of the diocese to divert" the course of the police investigation.
They alleged that the police probing the case was trying to sabotage the investigation.
The protest led by the nuns and Catholic reformist forums in Kochi in September had led to a public outrage and demands for action against the bishop.
Franco Mulakkal, accused of raping a nun several times between 2014 and 2016, is currently out on bail.
Police have initiated action against independent MLA P C George who had levelled derogatory charges against the victimised nun.
Bishop Mulakkal, a senior member of the Roman Catholic clergy in India, was arrested last year following allegations by the nun that he repeatedly raped and sexually assaulted her at the Kuravilangad convent between 2014 and 2016, a charge denied by him.
"The first phase of interrogation is over. He has been asked to be present tomorrow morning at 11 am for continued interrogation. He has agreed to it," Kottayam Superintendent of police Hari Sankar said after the marathon questioning of the priest.
In a press release, the congregation accused the victim, her five fellow nuns and four others of conspiring against the bishop.
The Kerala unit of the Congress instantly gets a headache when Shashi Tharoor lets loose one of his observations showering flowers on enemy territory. With every such action triggering controversy within a nervous Congress party, some feel it is high time Tharoor showed a degree of solidarity with the ideals of his party, notes Shyam G Menon.
The bench observed that if a hasty investigation was conducted, the accused would be allowed to go scot-free.
Ranaghat sub-disional hospital superintendent A N Mondal said that the nun was taken to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata, over 64 km away, from where she left for an undisclosed destination.
The Bishop will have to surrender his passport and his entry to Kerala will be restricted.
Sister Rosela Nuthangi, 65, from Sihphir village, about 15 km north of Aizawl, and Sister Ann Frida, 48, from Aizawl's Electric Veng locality along with three sisters from other nations are currently looking after 37 homeless Ukrainians and a student from Kerala in a storehouse (godown) in Kyiv and remain determined to continue with their work in Ukraine, their relatives in Aizawl said.
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