KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Tuesday declined to issue an interim directive to the police not to arrest two priests- Fr Sony Varghese (Abraham Varghese) and Fr Job Mathew - of Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church allegedly involved in a rape case.
The court posted the case to Monday and sought the view of the state government. The state government submitted that allegation against the priests are very serious and the FIR has been registered against them based on the statement of the victim.
Fr Sony Varghese, Fr Job Mathew, Fr Johnson V Mathew and Fr Jaise K George were named as accused persons in the FIR registered by Crime Branch.
The prosecution submitted that investigation in the case is in the embryo stage. It cannot undertake before the court that the petitioner will not arrest.
The petitioners produced an affidavit executed by the victim along with their petition. "Even if the allegations in its entirety are assumed to be correct, without admitting, the same does not make out an offence under section 376 (rape).The entire allegation reveals that the sexual intercourse if any, was fully consensual and there is not even any allegation that the consent was vitiated by fraud in any manner," the petition stated.
According to the priests, the affidavit of the victim clearly admits that the entire incident occurred after the victim attained 17 years of age. Thus the allegations do not reveal a non-consensual sex.
They further submitted that the crime has been registered solely at the instance of the political pressure exerted by certain vested interests to advance their political mileage. The petitioners apprehended that if they appear before the police they will be arrested and manhandled.