Sound Of Silence In God’s Court

The episcopal throne is a sturdy thing; to topple it is no simple task. The ongoing ignominy surrounding a nun’s claim that she was raped by the Latin Catholic (Syro-Malabar Church) bishop of Jalandhar, Franco Mulakkal, 54, has seen little progress in the criminal investigation and no internal inquiry or disciplinary proceedings ­initiated by the Church—amid rum­ours and acc­usations of political and monetary muscle being flexed and ranks being closed—and denials and counter-accusations from the alleged perpetrator, while a group of fellow nuns protest bearing red-lettered placards.