Police thoroughly probing sexual abuse case of Kerala nun
Kottayam, July 3: A special police team probing the allegation levelled by a Catholic nun that she was repeatedly sexually abused by a bishop is investigating the case thoroughly before they question the high-ranking church official, said informed sources.
The nun alleged that Franco Mulakkal, the Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Jalandhar (Punjab), sexually abused her 14 times between 2014 and 2016.
The bishop has denied the allegations, saying that he was being framed for taking action against her. According to Mulakkal, trouble started in 2016 when he took up a complaint against her.
The special team has already taken a detailed statement of the nun and a few of the inmates of the convent near here, where the nun is now staying and on Tuesday, forensic experts arrived to see what scientific evidence are required in the high-profile case which involves a high-ranking bishop of the powerful Roman Catholic Church.
According to the police probe team which completed the first round of evidence collection on Tuesday, it will now sit down to decide the time and nature of questioning the bishop.
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41 lakh illicit liquor seized, 1.84 lakh arrested in major drive: K'taka Minister tells Assembly
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): The Karnataka Excise Department has conducted a statewide crackdown on illegal liquor trade over the last two years, resulting in arrests and seizures of alcohol, Karnataka Excise Minister R B Timmapur said on Tuesday.
As many as 1,09,017 people were arrested, and seizures included 13.66 lakh litres of liquor and 27.19 lakh litres of beer, he said in a written reply to a starred question by Harihar BJP MLA B P Harish in the Karnataka Assembly.
The Minister said the enforcement drive covered the financial year 2023–24, 2024–25 up to June, and 2025–26 from July to October, targeting unauthorised liquor manufacture, storage, sale and transportation across the State.
"During this period, statewide enforcement drives resulted in a total of 1,84,570 raids against illegal liquor sales,” Timmapur said.
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He noted that 9,179 non-bailable cases and 91,968 bailable and compoundable cases under Section 15(A) of the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, were registered during the same period.
According to him, there have been no reports indicating that students have become addicted to alcohol due to illegal liquor sales.
The sale of alcohol to minors is strictly prohibited under the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, and the department has issued periodic instructions to initiate legal action against violators, with strict enforcement and investigation measures in place, the Minister said.
Excise officials are carrying out regular road and night patrols, collecting intelligence, monitoring habitual offenders and conducting raids to identify illicit distillation units, unauthorised liquor outlets and spurious liquor manufacturing centres, he said, adding the department is also enforcing the law to prevent the production, storage, sale and transport of spurious, non-duty-paid and unauthorised liquor.
Regular patrols are being conducted on national and state highways, with suspicious vehicles being subjected to checks.
At the district level, standing committee meetings are held under the chairmanship of Deputy Commissioners, and joint operations are carried out with the police and forest departments to curb excise-related offences.
The department is also conducting awareness programmes through Gram Sabhas and in schools and colleges to educate the public and students about the physical, mental and social health hazards associated with alcohol addiction and substance abuse, Timmapur added.
