In 1992, the body of a young nun named Sister Abhaya was pulled from a well with fingernail marks on her neck. Why did it take thirty years for anyone to be charged for her murder?

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Sources:

“Regressive, crude,” Indian Express, 24 July 2009

“Sister Sephy burst into tears, Fr Kottoor kept a stoic face,” The Times of India, 23 Dec 2020

“She was murdered for catching an Indian priest and nun in a sex act. Three decades later, justice is served,” Yerepouni Daily News, 25 Jan 2021

“A #MeToo movement for India as nuns speak out,” The Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct 2018

“Sister Abhaya case | Priest, nun, and the murder of a witness,” The Hindu, 2 Jan 2021

https://www.republicworld.com/india-news/law-and-order/nun-abhaya-murder-case-verdict-out-here-is-what-transpired-in-the-last-28-years.html

https://www.onmanorama.com/kerala/top-news/2020/12/24/sister-abhaya-case-cbi-court-verdict-how-priest-and-nun-sentenced-life.html

https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/what-does-justice-mean-teenaged-nun-killed-27-years-ago-kerala-108179

https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/kerala/2020/dec/23/finally-truth-has-come-out-former-cbi-officer-welcomes-court-verdict-on-sr-abhaya-murder-case-2239855.html

https://theprint.in/india/instead-of-warning-they-silenced-her-kerala-nun-abhayas-brother-recalls-28-year-fight/573883/

https://theprint.in/india/how-the-case-of-kerala-catholic-nun-sister-abhaya-turned-from-suicide-to-murder-in-28-yrs/571823/

https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/kerala/2019/sep/18/abhaya-murder-case-hearing-father-kottoor-behaved-indecently-with-students-says-ex-colleague-2035187.html

https://www.newindianexpress.com/magazine/voices/2021/jan/03/a-crime-of-convenience-2243769.html

Team:

Jillian Collins, research assistant

Jennifer Longworth of Bourbon Barrel Podcasting, editor

Music: Stereodog Productions (Dan Pierson & Peter Manheim). Intro and conclusion: “Guilty” by Richard A. Whiting, Harry Akst, and Gus Kahn, sung by Anna Telfer.