In this shocking incident from Kottiyoor in Chavakkad, a Kerala Catholic priest Robin Vadakkumchery has been arrested for raping a sixteen-year-old girl. She gave birth to a baby and TV channels report that the priest offered a sum of Rs 10 lakh to the family to hush it up. Now comes the most shocking part! The girl reportedly mentioned her own father as being responsible for her pregnancy! This has been reported by all local channels in Kerala.

However, the hospital authorities found out that the girl is a minor and they called in the police – after which, all hell broke out for the priest and when taken into custody for questioning, he confessed his guilt.

Father Robin Vadakkumchery is a vicar of St Sebastians Church in Kottiyoor and the girl is a student in the school that is run by the Church. According to news reports, the priest enjoys clout within the Church hierarchy and politically.

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This isn’t the first time that controversy has followed this priest. According to the statements given by other priests in secrecy to local TV channels such as Asianet News channel, complaints had come up several times, particularly in the context of nursing students but these complaints were reportedly hushed up because of his clout.

Also, local channels reported that a group within the Church had expressed strong disapproval that no strong action had been taken against the priest.

Kudos to the police for having acted swiftly – it is not always that we see cops showing the guts to rein in powerful and ”respected” individuals!

However, the root of a serious problem remains unsolved – what happens to offenses committed by those holding responsible positions in religious institutions? For strengthening the safety of minors and women, the need of the hour is to have a regulatory watchdog to keep a close track to fast-track these issues, particularly when such cases involve those at the helm.

After all, the law should be equal for all – a rape whether it is committed by a Catholic priest cannot be treated as ‘holier-than-thou’!