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| The scandal has sparked angry protests by clergy over police inaction |
An Indian
bishop accused of raping a nun was refused bail Saturday, and ordered to remain
in police custody to face questioning in a case that has triggered outrage
among clergy.
Bishop
Franco Mulakkal was arrested in southern Kerala state on Friday after Pope
Francis relieved him from duty over the scandal that has sparked days of angry
protests by clergy over police inaction.
Mulakkal,
who heads the Roman Catholic diocese of Jalandhar in the northern state of
Punjab, is accused of raping the nun 13 times between 2014 and 2016.
The nun,
who has not been named, first accused Mulakkal in June but police only started
formal questioning this month as fury over the case mounted.
Police
asked for more time on Saturday to question the 52-year-old, who has denied the
accusations.
In its
submission to the court in Kerala, police said Mulakkal had illegally confined
the victim in a guesthouse and subjected her "to rape and unnatural sex 13
times in the same room," the Times of India newspaper reported.
Mulakkal
has called the scandal a conspiracy by those opposed to the Roman Catholic
Church.
The
Catholics Bishops' Conference of India has said Mulakkal's arrest was a
"sad moment for all of us".
"As
said before we expect the law to take its course and for the truth to emerge.
At his moment our prayer is for healing," it said in a statement Friday.
Sexual
abuse by clergy and the failure of Church officials to take action has been one
of the biggest scandals facing Roman Catholicism globally in recent years.
Recently
five priests from Kerala, home to India's largest Christian population, were
arrested after sexual assault allegations.
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