Community slams presence of archbishop on sex abuse committee

Community slams presence of archbishop on sex abuse committee
Cardinal Oswald Gracias
Cardinal Oswald Gracias accused of not acting on sexual abuse complaints; he says nobody approached him.

As Pope Francis convened a meeting of church leaders at the Vatican on Thursday to address the issue of sexual abuse by clerics, Archdiocese of Bombay, Cardinal Oswald Gracias, who is also one of the heads of the four-day summit, has come under fire for allegedly failing to act when kin of victims of abuse approached him in Mumbai. Terming Cardinal Gracias’s appointment as one of the heads of summit as “ironical”, a section of Catholic community from the city has also questioned his access to the prestigious international platform. Cardinal Gracias will open the second day of the summit today in Rome, to address the accountability of the church. Incidentally, there are also whispers of him being the next Pope.

According to a BBC report released yesterday, the first such case of alleged neglect and indifference by Cardinal Gracias towards cases of sexual abuse dates back to 2015. A Mumbai-based family had approached him with the case of rape of their son, allegedly by a parish priest at a mass. The Cardinal purportedly went to Rome that night without alerting the authorities, and only later phoned the bishop to discuss the matter.

Mirror contacted the family of the victim of alleged sexual abuse. The mother of the victim claimed, “When we approached him after our son was abused by a priest, he gave us 10-15 minutes. He said he was going to Rome and will see what to do. He is not fit to be the church head. He should step down. My heart burns till today for the trauma my little son had to go through. I will neither forgive the Cardinal nor the priest.” Mirror is also in possession of the letter sent by the family to Cardinal Gracias in 2015.

When Cardinal Gracias was contacted in the Vatican, he refuted all allegations and said, “We have spoken to a few victims of sexual abuse before coming for the summit. Certainly no sexual abuse victim approached me with any complaints. These allegations are not true at all.”

Advocate Charmaine Bocaro, who is fighting for the victim, claimed that Cardinal Gracias was the wrong choice on the summit. “Neither was financial or psychological aid given, nor did the Cardinal adopt humanitarian approach. When the matter was brought to his notice, he should have informed the police. There is a mandatory provision under the POCSO Act,” she said, adding that the POCSO Act specifically requires the head of any company or institution to report a possible offence committed by a subordinate under his or her control.

Nahur resident Silveris Fernandes said, “In his position, Cardinal Gracias could have also defrocked Bishop Franko Mullakal. But he failed to do so. Other Catholics think we are against the church. But lives are ruined here. Counsellors are costly. I know of a girl from a choir group who lost her sanity after she was raped by a priest. I am glad the laity and the nuns are coming out now.”

Vincy Nazareth, a Mahim resident said, “The Cardinal tried to wriggle himself out by blaming the complainant without hearing them out. It is ridiculous for a man of his stature to be on the panel of the Pope’s community for sexual abuse.”


Anil Joseph, a Bandra resident from St Ann’s Church parish alleged, “The old adage states that charity begins at home. Similarly, justice must start with the Cardinal’s home turf, which is India, where we have certain diocese and bishops not adhering to guidelines. In fact, nuns are being harassed for supporting the rape survivor. In Mumbai, a priest who sodomised a boy is being supported legally by the Archdiocese.”

Judith Monteiro, a Dadar resident and parishioner of Our Lady of Salvation Church said, “When will Cardinal Oswald’s conscience catch up with him. His introspection surely told him he has failed the rape victims, be it the sodomised kids in Mumbai or nuns and the laity.”


Advocate Archie Sodder, member of Association of Concerned Catholics said, “A person with a clean slate should be on this panel. He should step down immediately in the interest of justice, considering that under the POCSO Act, once there is an allegation, there is presumption of guilt.” Advocate Godfrey Pimenta, committee member, Bombay Catholic Sabha, chose to see his appointment at the summit from a different perspective and said, “Sexual harassment is violation of human dignity. In this context appointment of Cardinal Gracias by his holiness Pope Francis on a committee to investigate such matters is a signal in the right direction.”