The man, a member of Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church, one of the most ancient churches, filed the complaint before the Church authorities after his wife narrated her ordeal following discovery of a five-star hotel bill in her email box. The incident came to light after his telephonic conversation with a church official got leaked and found its way to the social media, rocking the two-million strong church with 30 dioceses, including seven in other Indian states and three abroad.
According to the audio clip that has been widely circulated on social media, the woman confessed about her relationship with another priest before her marriage. The complaint said that the series of rape incidents began after the confession which was made during their daughter's baptism.
Asked why the church has not approached the police despite receiving the complaint three months ago, a highly placed church official said that it is the woman who should approach the police.
“What is stopping the woman from going to the police? Why should we approach the police when we have taken cognizance of the complaint and formed an internal committee to inquire? Suppose this was a case involving a minor, we would have approached the police ourselves. But in this case, the woman is an adult and she can seek the help of police if she wants to,” the official said.