By SAR News
Thrissur, May 5: A criminal case has been registered against the director of Divine Retreat Centre (DRC), Father George Panackal, and nine others at the Koratty police station.
The case was registered on April 30 following the filing of a first information report in the Kodungalloor Judicial Magistrate Court April 28 by the special investigation team headed by inspector general of police Vinson M Paul, after making preliminary inquiries into the allegations of irregularities in DRC at Muringoor near Thrissur.
Father George Panackal is implicated as the first accused. The others charged are procurator Father Mathew Thadathil, homoeopathic doctor Thankamma, Sister Teresa and six employees of the Retreat Centre.
The case is registered under sections 120B (Criminal conspiracy), 201 (causing disappearance of an evidence), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means) 328 (administering stupefying drugs with intent to cause hurt), 342 (wrongful confinement) and 420 (cheating and thereby dishonestly inducing delivery of property or the making, alterations or destruction of valuable security) of the Indian Penal Code.
The Kerala High Court had directed the state government March 10, 2006, to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the various activities of the Centre within two weeks. The SIT was constituted March 25, 2006.
Justice K. Padmanabhan Nair, acting suo motu on an anonymous letter, ordered an investigation into the alleged, criminal and antisocial activities in the DRC.
The charges levelled against the Divine Retreat Centre include violation of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, the Foreign Exchange Management Act and scandals like rape and deaths of some persons under mysterious circumstances at the Centre.
DRC, a venture of the Vincentian Congregation established in 1990 mainly for propagating the Word of God, has earned a pride of place among the pilgrim centres.
A spokesman for the Centre told SAR News on May 1 that over 9 million devotees from various parts of the country and abroad have visited the centre so far.
DRC conducts prayer services, preaching, discourses and administers sacraments throughout the year. Besides helping devotees in their spiritual rejuvenation and liberation from alcohol and drug addiction, the Centre also conducts healing services.
Barren married women too have borne children after praying at the DRC, the spokesman added.
The Special Investigation Team had raided the DRC on September 30 and October 1 last year. The opposition party members staged a walkout from the Kerala Assembly on October 17 over the raid.
The Indian National Congress Party-led United Democratic Front leader Oommen Chandy and other MLAs, including former law minister K.M. Mani, walked out of the Kerala Assembly when the Speaker refused to concede to the demand of the Opposition that the leftist chief minister V S Achuthanandan and home minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan should visit the DRC.
Meanwhile, state secretary of the Communist Party of India Marxist (CPI-M) Pinaryi Vijayan also visited DRC in January this year. He spent nearly two hours talking with the Centre's director Father Panackal and the staff.
CPM is the largest and influential partner of the ruling Left Democratic Front in the State.
Vijayan expressed regret over the highhandedness of the police and accused the police of showing undue haste and zeal in conducting the raid. Vijayan also accused the High Court of appointing the investigation officer, contrary to the usual practice of asking the government to appoint the investigating officer.
He also defended the DRC saying it was doing a very commendable work looking after the HIV/AIDS patients, the abandoned, old and helpless people.
Meanwhile, Father Panackal told SAR News onMay 1 that the cases against the director and other staff of DRC were part of a deft conspiracy.
Answering a query on the alleged sex scandal in DRC, he said the charge was baseless and untrue. Following the court order, a DNA test was carried out and it was found that the priest involved was not the father of the child in question.