Court Convicts Catholic Priest Of Sodomy, Hands Out 3 Years R.I.

Ranchi – A Jharkhand court has sentenced a Catholic priest, associated with Dumka Dhudani Catholic Mission, to three years rigorous imprisonment for molesting a tribal boy in 1997.

Chief Judicial Magistrate G.N. Pandey of Dumka district on December 13, who sentenced Father Christudas, gave the latter a month’s time to appeal before a higher court against the order. Pending the appeal, Fr. Christudas is free on bail.

The judge also slapped a fine of Rs 1000 on the allegedly errant priest. In case he failed to furnish the amount, he would have to undergo another six months of simple imprisonment.

As many as nineteen witnesses deposed during the trial.

Father Christudas, vice principal of St. Joseph's School at Guhiyajori in the district, was stripped and paraded naked in front of government officials on September 2, 1997 after being accused of committing sodomy with a 14–year–old schoolboy.

Fr. Christudas said he would appeal the order.

According to church officials, fundamentalist groups, opposed to the work of the church, instigated a group of students to strip Christudas and beat him before parading him through the streets.

The priest was later taken under police custody and a molestation charge was filed against him.

The Dumka diocese filed a case stating that the administration had colluded with miscreants in humiliating and assaulting the priest and registering a false case against him.

They claimed that Das was a strict disciplinarian and that some students took revenge after being thrown out of the hostel for indiscipline.

Father Christudas, hailing from Tamil Nadu, has worked for several years in Dumka, a Santhal tribal area.