The Kerala High Court on June 23 granted bail to a Catholic priest and a nun who have been sentenced to life imprisonment in the sensational Abhaya murder case.
The division bench of Justices Vinod Chandran and C Jayachandran acted upon the petitions of Father Thomas Kottoor and Sister Sephy seeking suspension of their life term.
The court asked the two to deposit 500,000 rupees each and refrain from leaving Kerala without the court’s permission.
Earlier in December 2020, a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Special Court had sentenced the priest to two life terms besides a fine of 500,000 rupees after conviction under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code.
Sister Sephy was also convicted and handed down life imprisonment under the same section in addition to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for tampering with evidence under Section 201 (destruction of evidence).
After a prolonged legal battle, the CBI court had found them guilty of murdering Sister Abhaya, whose body was found March 27, 1992, inside a well at a con-vent in Kottayam, a town in Kerala. The trial court had allowed the discharge petition of another alleged accused Father Jose Puthrikkayil.