KOTTAYAM: A priest, a nun and a corrupt criminal justice system fell to their knees before the will power of a 'petty thief' on Tuesday, with the Thiruvananthapuram Special CBI Court pronouncing the accused guilty in the sensational Sr Abhaya murder case.
In the wee hours of March 27, 1992, Adakka Raju had broken into the compound of Pius X Convent to steal the copper plate connected to the lightning arrester installed on the terrace. As he sat perched on a cocoa tree waiting to scale the wall, he spotted two priests climbing the stairway on the rear side of the convent.
Years later, he identified one of them from the newspapers -- Fr Thomas Kottoor, accused of murdering a young nun on the fateful night in which he had gone to the convent. When Raju approached the investigating officers with his account of events, he was not prepared for what was to come.
'My child got justice'
After unsuccessfully attempting to buy Raju off with huge amounts of money, the officials resorted to brutal torture to try and get him to confess to the crime. Raju, however, stuck to his stance, repeating in court what he had told the sleuths. His statement paid off on Tuesday, with the court finding Kottoor and Sr Sephy guilty.
"My child got justice. I yearned for justice to be served to her (Abhaya). She got it now, and I am extremely happy. I’ll drink in joy today," an elated Raju told mediapersons, soon after the judgment was delivered.
Raju said though he got many offers, some worth crores of rupees, to change his statement, he did not take even a single rupee. He still lives on three cents of land in a colony.