Sister Abhaya Murder Case Wikipedia: The constitution of our country is flexible, due to which it is easy for the government to make laws, but it takes many years to give decisions according to that law. Due to which many cases get lost in the pit of despair and many cases are so serious that by the time they get justice, the victim loses all hope. Crimes against women are continuously increasing in the country. After the gangrape of Nirbhaya in 2012, it has been seen that there has been an increase in the cases of registered crimes against women. But even today, there is a delay in getting justice.
Today we will tell you about such a heinous crime, the mystery of which has taken a long time of 28 years to be solved. This case is of 1992, in which the victim was a nun in a church who comes to a far away city to study. The victim’s name was Abhaya. This case took 28 years to end and the accused were punished in 2020.
There was a sensation in Kottayam city of Kerala when the dead body of a 21-year-old girl was seen floating in a well. This whole matter continued between murder and suicide. But looking at the evidence and the prevailing circumstances, the accused went behind the bars on December 22, 2020.
Who was Sister Abhaya?
Abhaya was a 21-year-old girl, who was staying at St. Pius Convent in Kottayam city of Kerala state for a pre-degree course. Abhaya was smart in studies and she wanted to serve the society when she grew up. That’s why Abhaya was studying while staying in the convent.
What happened on 07 March
This incident took place on March 7, 1992, when Abhaya went to the kitchen at 3:30 in the night to drink water. But as soon as Abhaya is about to return, she hears some sound. As soon as she moves towards the sound, Abhaya’s eyes cannot believe it. Abhaya sees Father Jose, Father Kottoor and Sister Saifi of her church in a compromising position.
Sister and father get scared and Father Jose strangles Sister Abhay, while Saifi kills Abhay with a sharp weapon kept in the kitchen. All three of them throw the body in a well in the church to dispose of it. And destroy the evidence of murder. By morning this news spreads like wildfire and the police is informed.
The local police quashed the case.
The local police closed the case on the pretext of suicide due to the girl’s psychological condition not being good. But many social workers of Kerala took to the streets to get justice for Abhaya. After which this case was opened under pressure.
CBI investigation revealed murder
When the case was re-opened, the wound marks and evidence on the dead body were confirmed after the post-mortem, after which, according to the arguments and evidence, the CBI investigation revealed the murder. After hearing this, Father Kottoor, Father Jose and Sister Saifi were shocked. The evidence was completely destroyed during these days. Due to which the murder was exposed but the CBI still did not pay attention to who committed the murder. The CBI investigation was started in the year 1993.
This investigation continued for 15 years. The court rejected all three CBI reports and handed over the responsibility to the local Kerala Crime Branch. After which the charge sheet came out in which three murderers Father Jose, Father Kottoor and Sister Saifi were considered accused.
Sister Saifi filed a petition
Sister Saifi filed a petition in the Delhi High Court to get relief from her crimes. The petition said that the CBI had conducted her virginity test against her will and without her consent as part of the investigation. Saifi said in her petition that her virginity test was done under the guise of investigation, which had no relevance to this murder. This was done only to humiliate her. Sister Saifi alleged violation of her right to dignity and demanded compensation for the same, however Sister Saifi did not suffer any kind of loss so her petition was rejected.
What did Delhi High Court say –
The High Court gave a 57-page verdict in this case. The decision said that the courts reject the conduct of such testing.
The bench said that everyone has been given protection under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. In which the right to dignity is guaranteed to every person including a prisoner, whether convicted, under trial or in custody.
Sister Saifi got hymenoplasty done
In the virginity test conducted by CBI, it was found that the sister was virgin, although it was claimed in the report that she had undergone hymenoplasty so that she could save herself. Actually, hymenoplasty is the process by which the girl becomes virgin despite losing her virginity.
Many witnesses turned hostile and many died.
In 2009, names of 177 witnesses were put forward. As time passed, some witnesses retracted their statements and some even died. Like Abhaya’s parents passed away in the year 2016. Sister Legieux, a key witness in the case and head mother of the convent, also died. Similarly, S. Das, who was a watchman near the incident site, also died. At the same time, about 9 witnesses had turned hostile in their statements.
All investigating agencies came under suspicion
This case became so suspicious that the court’s decision, CBI investigation, local police, crime branch and even pressure from the church came into discussion. There was a deadlock among all of them. Due to which this case kept getting delayed. According to media reports, an officer had also resigned from his post amid the deadlock.
A thief solved the case
The court was not able to take any decision in this incident until the thief was not entered in this case. A thief named Raju cleared this case like water. Because Raju had entered the convent that very night with the intention of stealing. When this incident was happening he was the only one who saw it all happening before his eyes. Raju’s testimony was the biggest turning point for this case. Raju gave his testimony in the court, on the basis of which the accused were punished. Father Jose was released due to lack of evidence but Sister Saifi and Father Kottoor were sentenced to life imprisonment.
Got an offer worth crores
While talking to the media, Raju said that crores of rupees were given to him by father and sister to retract his statement, but he remained firm on his words, due to which today the murderers are behind the bars.
The CBI Special Court has admitted that the first culprit of the murder is Pastor Thomas Kottoor, while the second culprit is Sister Sefi. A case charge sheet was filed against Pastor Thomas under serious sections of IPC like section 302 i.e. murder, destruction of evidence (IPC-201) and entering house without permission (449). While Sister Sefi has been found guilty under sections of murder and destruction of evidence.
(The author is a senior journalist.)
