* Examination (by doctors) revealed that her pendulous breasts were suggestive of vigorous fondling during s*xual intercourse...
*...There was no necessity for a nun, who is a virgin, to undergo hymenoplasty/surgical interference. The only reason for such corrective surgery is for concealing evidence of rupture of her hymen due to frequent v**ginal s*xual intercourse.
These aren’t the fevered scribbles of someone crude or ignorant or both — this is from the chargesheet filed last week in a Kochi court by the CBI, the country’s premier investigating agency, in the Sister Abhaya murder case.
These statements (on pages 29-30 of the 70-page chargesheet) refer to a 46-year-old nun, Sister Sephy, named as the third accused in the case.
Interrogating Sephy, the CBI subjected her to a medical examination to test her claim that she was a virgin.
For, the agency’s case is built on the assumption that Sephy had an “illicit affair” with priests Father Thomas M Kottor and Father Jose Puthrukkayil, the first and the second accused.
Early on March 27, 1992, Sister Abhaya — according to the chargesheet — happened to see the three in “suspicious circumstances”. Fearing that she would “reveal” the incident to others, the accused hit her with a blunt object, the CBI alleged. Abhaya, 21, fell unconscious and was thrown into the well of her Pious 10th Convent, Kottayam, where she was found dead, says the chargesheet.
To back this line, the CBI “examined” the accused nun’s claim of virginity. According to the chargesheet, Sephy was examined at T D Medical College, Alappuzha, to ascertain whether she had “v**ginal s*xual intercourse.”
The doctors who examined her were Dr P Rema, of the department of Forensic Medicine, and Dr Lalithambika Karunakaran, of the department of Gynaecology.
“The detailed examination revealed that Sephy’s hymen was subjected to surgical interference/ hymenoplasty and due to which it was not possible to determine her virginity,” says the CBI.
And then goes on to add: “There was no necessity for a nun, who is a virgin, to undergo hymenoplasty/ surgical interference. The only reason for such corrective surgery is for concealing the evidence of rupture of her hymen due to frequent v**ginal s*xual intercourse.”
The CBI also asked for examination of her breasts to claim that she was a “woman of loose morals.”
And, in a bizarre conclusion, said that her “pendulous” breasts were “suggestive of vigorous fondling during s*xual intercourse.”
The chargesheet cites “witnesses of the convent” as having “revealed” that Sephy had “intimate contacts with Father Kottor and Fr Puthrukkayil.” It adds: “For the mutual benefit and convenience of the three accused, the basement of the hostel was the most suitable place for their nocturnal activities in the late night and early hours of the morning.”
When contacted, Dr Karunakaran declined to comment. CBI Investigating Officer Nandakumar Nair was not available for his reaction.
Sister Annie John, Mother General of St Joseph’s Congregation to which Sister Sephy and Sister Abhaya belong, dismissed the CBI’s claim. “Sephy is a virgin. We are ready to produce her before any medical board to prove her virginity. The CBI has been spreading malice.”
