Daijiworld Media Network – Mumbai (MS)

Mumbai, Dec 31: The family of the sodomy victim said that the verdict of awarding life sentence to priest Fr Lawrence Johnson has restored their faith in Justice and Jesus.

The victim’s mother said that Jesus has answered her prayers for Christmas. Courts gave the punishment today but I held him the very day he committed the crime and he confessed to the crime kneeling down in front of me. My faith in the people who manage church is broken but my faith in Jesus is unshakable.

The victim has turned 18 now and his mother says that he is still under treatment for bodily ailments, apart from suffering hallucinations and nightmares. Mother of the victim said that the supporters of Fr Lawrence held a morcha against the family accusing them of filing a false case to extort money. The boy who was bleeding due to the sodomy was not taken into consideration.

The victim’s mother said that the Archbishop of Mumbai tried to cover up the incident. Oswal Cardinal Gracias said that he is going to Rome and will see the issue after return. The only person who really stood by the boy and his mother was Brother Joe of SSVP.

The cardinal gave no proper response to the victim and his mother when I took them to him. Moreover, a parish official asked the mother to forget the incident saying that after all the victim is a boy and not a girl. This information was given by Brother Joe of SSVP.