NEW DELHI – Indian police said Tuesday they are investigating fourChristian priests for allegedly raping and blackmailing a woman in a cycleof abuse and threats lasting almost 20 years.
The woman told police that her ordeal began while still a minor in the1990s when an Orthodox priest at a church in the southern state of Keralaforced her into sex.
She confessed to a second priest, who allegedly blackmailed her into havingsex with him. A further two two priests also threatened her and forced herinto sex, the woman, who has not been named, told investigators.
“We filed a case on Monday based on her complaint. We have now started ourinvestigation,” local police official S. Sreejith told AFP.
Her alleged suffering only came to light after an audio clip of her husbandcomplaining to a church official went viral on social media, media reportssaid.
The Christan community in India, as elsewhere around the world, has beenrocked by sexual abuse allegations.
Last year, a pastor accused of raping two women on the pretext of drivingout evil spirits was arrested in eastern India.
In 2016, an Indian priest was sentenced to 40 years in prison for raping a12-year-old girl.
Christianity is India’s third-biggest religion according to the 2011census, with approximately 28 million followers or 2.3 percent of thepopulation.
Sexual violence is rife in India with nearly 40,000 rape cases reported in2016, which activists say is the tip of the iceberg as most cases gounreported.