MP-PRIEST-SUICIDE

A catholic priest has been arrested in Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh for allegedly

abetting the suicide of a 17-year-old girl, the police said Sunday.

The accused was identified as Father Prakash Damor (33).

The suicide note of the girl, who allegedly hanged herself at her house on January 4, stated that Damor was

pressurising her to marry him, said inspector Kailash Chauhan of Ranapur police station.

"We arrested him under IPC section 306 (abetment of suicide) and also under the Protection of Children from Sexual

Offences (POCSO) Act Tuesday (January 15)," Chauhan said. The accused had first met the girl at a missionary

school where she was studying in Class 11, the police officer said.

Damor was produced before a court the same day and was remanded in judicial custody.

Jhabua Catholic Diocese spokesperson Father Rockey Shah said the Church stands with the girl's family in their

grief, but Damor was booked without proper investigation. "We want an in-depth inquiry so that the real culprit

is arrested," he said.