India charges two Catholic priests with attempted murder, kidnapping for ransom of bishop

The Indian police arrested two Catholic priests for kidnapping Bishop Prasad Gallela early last week.

The priests, Fathers Raja Reddy and Mohan Reddy, reportedly confessed to committing the crime. Twelve others who were arrested are believed to be members of the gang they hired to kidnap the prelate.

Bishop Gallela, who belongs to the diocese in Cuddapah, Andhra Pradesh, was kidnapped on April 25 while he was on his way home from celebrating Mass. He said his attackers handcuffed him and brought him to "an undisclosed location." There, his kidnappers beat him. His driver was also held captive.

The bishop said the men who kidnapped him demanded him to pay an amount equivalent to $75,000. They also repeatedly asked him about the diocese's financial transactions.

"When I asked who they were, they said they are from the police but police does not behave like this," he told UCA News.

His kidnappers released him and his driver the following day, but not before he agreed to give them $30,000. They were left in a place about 90 kilometers away from his diocese.

When the police conducted an investigation, they discovered that the two priests were involved and were the ones who planned the kidnapping. According to police superintendent Navin Gulati, the two also confessed to four earlier kidnapping attempts.

Gulati said the priests were angry that they got transferred. One of them heads a charity funded by sponsors from overseas and accused Bishop Gallela of mishandling the funds. The prelate's kidnapping was done out of "greed for money and power," Gulati said.

The two priests were charged with kidnapping and attempted murder.

The Catholic Bishops' Conference of India has not commented on the issue, but spokesperson Father Gyanparakash Topno said it is "shocking" to discover that priests were involved in the crime.

Bishop Gallela, who is still recuperating from his injuries, has yet to release his statement on the issue.