Will take call on bishop's arrest after interrogation: Kerala police

The Kerala Police on Friday said that they will take call on the arrest of Bishop Franco Mulakkal, who allegedly raped a nun, after his interrogation.

Speaking to ANI, Kottayam Superintendent of Police (SP), Harisankar said, "After interrogation, we will decide whether to go forward with his arrest or not. I can't say if the arrest will be made today."

Mulakkal appeared before a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Kochi Police for the third day on Friday. He reached the Crime Branch (CID) office in Thrippunithura this morning and is being quizzed by a five-member team headed by Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police, K Subhash, over the nun's allegations.

The senior Catholic priest, who was incharge of the Jalandhar diocese, was temporarily relieved of his pastoral duties by Pope Francis, yesterday. The move came days after he wrote to the Pope, expressing his desire to 'temporarily step aside' from the responsibilities of the diocese, allowing him time to fight his case.

The nun had accused the Mulakkal of raping her 13 times between 2014 and 2016. The bishop, however, refuted the allegations, terming them "baseless and concocted". Several priests and nuns have been protesting against the bishop in Kerala. On Thursday, activists staged a protest outside the Kerala Secretariat in Trivandrum, demanding that the prelate be arrested.

Mulakkal had earlier filed for anticipatory bail in the Kerala High Court, which was deferred to September 25.