An Indian Bishop and a British Prince say they are innocent
A Cartoon by John Gracias
January 16, 2022
Last week, a court in Kerala, India, acquitted Bishop Franco Mulakkal, 57-years-old, accused of raping a nun multiple times from 2014 to 2016. Protests erupted in the state, including by a group of nuns outside the Kerala High Court, following the nun’s allegations that the Catholic Church had ignored her complaints. In 2018, Mulakkal was arrested and released on bail.
Reporting about the proceedings of the trial were banned by the judge, granting Mulakkal's request.
Mulakkal, who was smiling as he left the court, was seen leading a mass at a church, soon after the verdict. He told the media, "Truth has won.”
Prosecutors and the nun’s lawyers said they will challenge the verdict in the high court. Sister Lucy Kalappura, one of the protesters and who was expelled from the congretation after her protests, told the BBC, “this is against many nuns. . We will fight till the end of our lives. Justice never dies."
Also last week, a court in New York ruled that a case brought against Prince Andrew can proceed to trial. In the suit, Virginia Giuffre alleges that Andrew forced her to have sex with him when she was 17-years-old. Following the court’s decision, Queen Elizabeth, the British monarch who is Prince Andrew’s mother, stripped him of his royal and honorary military titles.
In 2019, in his defense Andrew told The BBC, "I can absolutely categorically tell you it never happened. I have no recollection of ever meeting this lady, none whatsoever." Since then, CNN and other media have published photos of Andrew with Giuffre.
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