Priest arrested for abetting student’s suicide
By IANSThursday, March 25, 2010
BHOPAL - A priest at a church-run seminary in this Madhya Pradesh city has been arrested for allegedly abetting the suicide of a 19-year-old studying in the institution, police said Thursday.
According to police, Father Thomas Philip, director of Bhopal Archdiocese’s St. Teresa Seminary, was arrested Tuesday over the Jan 29 suicide of Venu Kumar.
“He has been arrested on charges of abetment to suicide,” Bhopal Superintendent of Police Yogesh Chaudhary said.
Police were also on the lookout for Father Raju, who sent the young man to the seminary from Andhra Pradesh.
“My son has been tortured to death. A towel with bloodstains was recovered from his room. There was also overwriting in the suicide note recovered from the spot,” alleges Sriniwas Rao, father of the deceased.
“The reason citied is that my son was in relationship with a girl. This is also untrue as the seminary is in a closed campus on the outskirts of the city,” he said.
The Church, however, refuted all charges of abetment to suicide.
Father Anand Muttungal, spokesperson of the Catholic Church in Madhya Pradesh, said: “Rao is making false allegations against the Church since we had rejected the demand for Rs.7 lakh made by him after his son’s suicide.”
