After almost 28 years of legal wrangling, a special court of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) here on Tuesday found that Fr. Thomas. M. Kottoor and Sister Sephy were guilty of the murder of 19-year-old novice Sister Abhaya who was found dead in a well at Pious X convent of the Knanaya Catholic order in Kottayam in March 1992.
CBI Special Judge K. Sanal Kumar said he would pronounce the quantum of their punishment on Wednesday. The court found the accused liable for murder, destruction of evidence and common intention under Sections 302, 201 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code. The judge cancelled their bail and remanded them in judicial custody.
The CBI case was that accused had killed Abhaya after she found them in objectionable circumstances when she went to collect drinking water from the kitchen of the convent on the night of March 27.
Sister Abhaya. File
The accused were startled by Abhaya's arrival. To prevent their liaison from being known, Sister Stephy bludgeoned Abhaya on the side of her head with the blunt side of an axe. The suspects dumped Abhaya's body in the well of the convent to make her murder appear as a suicide, the CBI had argued.
Also read: CBI produces offside witness in Abhaya case
The agency had arraigned another priest, Fr. Jose Poothrukayil, as an accomplice in the crime. However, the court discharged him from the case in 2018 for want of evidence.
The CBI had also arraigned former Crime Branch SP K. T. Michael as fourth accused in the case on the charge of destruction of evidence. Mr. Michael had investigated the case initially. He had concluded that Abhaya was genetically pre-disposed to depression and had committed suicide. However, the High Court discharged him from the case for lack of evidence.
The CBI had also alleged that the Crime Branch had wilfully suppressed evidence by destroying eight objects, including Abhaya's personal journal, marked as evidence.
The Kottayam West police had dismissed Abhaya's death as a suicide initially. The Crime Branch had seconded the opinion of the local law enforcement later.
The findings caused public outrage. The local people formed an action council headed by Jomon Puthanpurackal, a public interest litigant, to press for a CBI inquiry into Abhaya's death. The agitation gained traction across Kerala, prompting the government to recommend a CBI probe in 1995.
The case took another sensational turn in 1996 when the then CBI Dy. SP, Varghese. P. Thomas, opted for voluntary retirement after he allegedly came under pressure from his superior to write off Abhaya's suspicious death as a suicide.
Mr. Puthanpurackal doggedly pursued the case as it meandered through various levels of the judiciary. The trial in the case finally commenced in August 2019. The prosecution surmounted several hurdles, including hostile witnesses, to secure a conviction.
Multiple officers had investigated the case over the years and reached varying conclusions. CBI SP Nandakumaran Nair prosecuted the matter finally. The CBI had extended his service for six months recently.