KOCHI, Dec 13 2019: The Kerala high court on Dec 13 stayed further proceedings before Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Kakkanad against cardinal George Alencherry in the case related to Syro Malabar Church land-sale row.
Justice Ashok Menon issued a stay for one month after considering during admission hearing a petition filed by the cardinal, through advocate John Varghese, seeking to quash the case.
The JFCM court had issued summons to the cardinal while taking the case on file on a complaint filed by Joshy Varghese of Pulluvazhy
near Kunnathunadu . Offences alleged in the complaint included criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, cheating, fraudulent execution of deed of transfer, and forgery for cheating.
Contending that there is abuse of process of court, the cardinal has contended at the high court that multiple complaints have been filed before various courts over the same allegations. Several complaints have been filed repeatedly before various courts with a view to harass him, the cardinal has alleged while pointing out that all the six land transactions are included in some complaints while others mention only about one of the six transactions. In some complaints filed before courts, the fact that another court is considering a complaint about the very same transaction is withheld, it is alleged.
It is settled law that once a court dismisses a case on merits, no second complaint on the same subject matter could be entertained by the court unless exceptional circumstances are shown, the cardinal’s petition said.
The cardinal’s petition also said internal management of the archdiocese and sale of its properties not being governed by any statute, no public element is involved in it. It is essentially a civil matter that will be resolved by the mechanism provided in the church itself and the criminal complaint was wholly unjustified and constitutes serious abuse of criminal procedure, the petition stated.
source: Times of India