Nearly 29 years after she was found dead in mysterious conditions, a CBI Special Court in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday found that Sister Abhaya (19), a novice belonging to Pius X Convent at Kottayam, was murdered and Father Thomas Kottoor (71) and Sister Sephy (57), a once glamour girl of the Congregation, were guilty of the act.
The quantum of punishment would be pronounced on Wednesday, said Judge K Sanal Kumar who heard the year-long trial which was probed by the CBI. While Kottoor said he was innocent , Sephy broke down in the courtroom.
Sister Abhaya was found dead in a well in the Convent on March 27, 1992. The Kerala Police which probed the case wrote it off as a case of suicide. K T Michael, the Crime Branch Dy SP who investigated the case had declared in a press meet that Abhaya’s death was a case of suicide. An inspector who dissented with him was found dead in mysterious condition. But the relentless legal battle by Jomon Puthenpurackal, a school dropout from Abhaya’s village led the CBI to investigate the cause behind the death.
The court took into account the eye-witness account rendered by Raju, a robber who saw the entire proceedings sitting atop a tree. He had entered the Convent premises on the night of March 26-27 with the intention of robbing when he saw the two priests and Sister Sephy in compromising positions in the dining room.
Abhaya who came to the dining room for a glass of water saw the trio too and Sister Sephy ordered the other two to finish her off lest the former would make life difficult for her. The priests murdered Abhaya and dumped her body in the well. The local police and the crime branch which probed the case had destroyed most of the evidence by the time the CBI was entrusted with the investigation.
The CBI investigation too was not without controversies. Varghese P Thomas, the deputy superintendent, who was the investigating officer had to resign from service following department and political pressure to change the course of the investigation. Though the CBI approached the Ernakulam Judicial Magistrate thrice with pleas to wind up the probe, the court declined to entertain the requests.
Nandakumar Nair, Dy SP, CBI was appointed as the IO in November 2008 and the probe took a new turn. Within days of Nandakumar taking over the case, the CBI arrested Fr Thomas Kottoor, Fr Jose Poothrikkayil and Sister Sephy in connection with the murder of Abhaya. But the CBI Special Court discharged Fr Poothrikkayil while rejecting the petitions of the other two accused.
The trial commenced in August 2019 which culminated on Tuesday with the verdict delivered by Judge Sanal Kumar that Fr Kottoor was guilty of trespass and murder while Sephy was found to have committed the murder and destruction of evidence.
Sr Abhaya Murder case had led to the production of feature films based on the subject. The world is obliged to Jomon Puthenpurackal who led an action council to ensure that Abhaya gets justice. And Justice has been delivered in the 28 year old murder.
The CBI probe led by Nadakumar established that Sephy, who was expected to be the Christ’s bride eternally, had undergone surgery for revirginization which is known in common parlour as hymenoplasty.
The woes of the Church do not end with the Abhaya case. Divya P John, a final year novitiate trainee at Baselian Convent in Thiruvalla too was found dead under mysterious conditions in a well in the convent on May 7. There has been demands from various organisations for a CBI probe into the case. “The authorities are indifferent to our demand though we had submitted a request to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan asking for a CBI probe. We do not know why the powers that be are indifferent to the mysterious death of a nun. The last 28 years have seen 22 nun trainees dead under mysterious circumstances in the Convents and this is a matter of concern,” said Luckose Chullikkartan, who heads Justice for Sister Lucy (JSL) launched to ensure justice for Sr Lucy who was expelled from a congregation of nuns.
