Actor Joy Mathew, and 24 others, have been booked by the Kerala police for taking out a protest against rape-accused Bishop Franco Mulakkal in the recently renovated 'Mittayi Theruvu' area of Kozhikode. The protest march was organised on September 12 and there was prohibitory order in force in the area, state reports.
According to the police, the actor and others flouted the law despite being warned against protesting in the area. A case has been registered under the following sections of the Indian Penal Code: unlawful assembly, breach of practice, rioting and obstructing public way, the police added.
Reacting to this, Joy Mathew said that he had not been aware of the prohibitory order before taking out the protest. He even added that he felt 'this in an attempt to scare me for supporting the nuns'. The actor even emphasised that the protest march was a silent one where protesters held placards.
The actor has been one of the prominent voices lending his support to the nuns' protest to arrest Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mulakkal who has been accused of raping a nun. The actor even participated in the 14-day protest held by the 5 nuns of the Missionaries of Jesus congregation before the Kerala High Court in Kochi to get Bishop Franco arrested.
After three days of rigorous questioning, the Bishop was finally arrested on Friday night and taken to the Pala magistrate court on Saturday morning. Meanwhile for showing support to the nuns' protest in Kerala, the Orthodox Church in Kerala banned Sr Lucy Kalappura of the Mananthavady diocese of Wayanad from taking part in pastoral activities including teaching the Bible, worship service and offering holy communion the church. Following this a priest in the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church - Ramban Yuhanon - has been warned against lending his support to the nuns' protest by the Syrian Christian church.