The Kerala High Court on Wednesday ordered Sister Lucy to vacate from the Franciscan Clarist Convent at Karakkamala, saying that it will provide protection to her only outside the convent premises. During the hearing in the HC, Sister Lucy pleaded with the court to not make her leave the convent since she had been a nun there for decades. However, the Kerala HC stated that ‘protection to life’ will be granted to Sister Lucy whenever she chooses to stay but only outside the convent.
The Kerala High Court had witnessed a unique moment in its history with Sr Lucy Kalappura, the nun expelled by her congregation, deciding to argue the case against her eviction from the convent herself, perhaps becoming the first nun to appear and fight a case herself in a court in India. Sr Lucy Kalappura, who was expelled from the Franciscan Clarist Convent in Karakkamala, has attended the virtual hearing in the police protection case scheduled before Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan on Wednesday. Sr Lucy decided to argue the petition filed by her seeking police protection after her lawyer relinquished the vakalath. According to Lucy, she only sought an order of police protection from the court and an interim order was passed in favour of her. The order is still in force. She pointed out that the observation regarding the continued stay in the convent is beyond the scope of the contention in the writ petition.
