By Jose Kavi
New Delhi, March 28, 2022: The relatives of a former rector of Bengaluru’s St Peter’s Pontifical Institute have sought an independent probe nine years after his mysterious death on an Easter Sunday.
Father K J Thomas, who had taught theology in the major seminary for 25 years, was found murdered on April 1, 2013.
“This April 1 it will be nine years since my uncle was physically tortured and murdered in the most inhuman way,” says a letter from Joyson Mathew, one Father Thomas’ nephews, to Archbishop Peter Machado of Bangalore.
“You knew him personally and so you know well that he did not die due to his personal hostility with anyone. My uncle was an innocent victim of the language dispute and the dispute over the ownership of the seminary which was a boiling issue before the murder,” says March 27 letter.
The nephew says the past nine years have been a time of grief and sorrow for the slain priest’s immediate family members. “We still miss him dearly,” he added.
The police had arrested 12 people, including eight Catholic priests, in connection with the murder.
Mathew regrets that the trial of the case has not been begun because of some legal hurdles. “I firmly believe the accused are the real culprits and more evidence needs to be collected to strengthen the case when it comes for trial. At this juncture I believe an investigation by an outside agency like CBI would strengthen the progress of the case and book the culprits and do justice to my uncle,” he adds.
The nephew also requests the archbishop to write to the Karnataka chief minister seeking a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation that could prepare a fresh chargesheet to speed up the trial.
The nephew also wants the archbishop to explain the status of “the accused clergy” in the case. “Have they been appointed to any posts or what actions have been taken against them?” he asks.
He reminds the prelate that the family members have always remained silent “right from the beginning of the case.” They have “fully cooperated with the investigation agencies and the Church authorities” in connection with the case.
“Now we genuinely feel that the investigation by an outside agency will speed up this case and bring justice to our slain uncle,” Mathew asserts.
The Karnataka police first named Fathers I Anthappa, Chesara, A Thomas, and Anbu John as the prime accused in the chargesheet filed before the designated court on November 26, 2013.
The police also named three others as the conspirators in the case.
The police had a tough time cracking the case in the absence of any conclusive evidence. They took more than 100 people into custody for questioning. The second chargesheet runs into more than 10,000 pages with the police examining 127 witnesses.
According to the police, more than a dozen people from various Catholic institutions had allegedly conspired to kill Father Thomas. After a year-long probe, the police named Fathers Elias Daniel and William Patrick and seminarian Peter as the prime accused in its chargesheet filed on June 17, 2014.
According to the police, the accused planned to eliminate Father Thomas during Easter in 2013, as most students and staff were on leave. In the chargesheet, the police said Fathers Elias and William and Peter entered the seminary office on the night of March 31, 2013, armed with weapons. When they were stealing the seminary ownership documents, Father Thomas confronted them resulting in the fatal attack on him.