Bishop Franco Mulakkal who is the prime accused in the nun rape case in Kerala was granted bail by the Kottayam Additional Sessions court on Friday. This comes after the trial court in July canceled his bail for failing to turn up for all hearings. The court has now granted bail to the rape accused Bishop on a fresh bail surety and adjourned the next hearing to August 13, 2020. His new bail conditions specify that until August 13, Bishop Franco must not leave Kerala and must also be physically present for all subsequent hearings. 

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The prosecution also pointed out that the accused, who was tested positive for coronavirus in July in Jalandhar, Punjab, had not submitted a COVID-19 positive certificate before the court. The court observed that this will be looked into by the health department. The court has also directed the accused to submit a fresh bail bond, and it is on this condition that the court granted him bail. Special prosecutor Jithesh Babu appeared for the prosecution and advocates CS Ajayan and Sudeesh Kumar appeared for the accused Bishop.

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Back on July 13,  the trial court in Kottayam had rejected Bishop Franco’s bail after the accused had failed to turn up at court for all 14 hearings held so far. His counsel had then told the court that the Bishop was unable to appear for the July 13 hearing as he had been in quarantine after meeting a lawyer in Jalandhar who tested positive for the virus. The Bishop later also tested positive for the virus after his swab samples were taken at the Jalandhar Civil Lines hospital.

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