On Saturday, Bishop Franco Mulakkal’s bail application was rejected and he was sent to police custody till 24 September.
Bishop Franco Mulakkal, arrested by the police over allegations of repeatedly raping and sexually assaulting a nun, was earlier discharged from the government hospital in the city where he was admitted following complaints of chest pain, officials sources said.
He had complained of pain in his chest while being taken to Kottayam Police club from the Crime Branch office in Thrippunithura in Ernakulam district Friday night, they said.
He was under observation in the cardiology section of the Medical College Hospital for over 6 hours after his blood pressure shot up, they said.
Sources said ECG and other cardiac related tests were performed.His health condition is said to be normal.
In her complaint to the Kottayam Police in June, the nun had alleged that Bishop Mulakkal raped her at a guest house in Kuravilangad in May 2014 and later sexually exploited her on several occasions.
She said she had to approach the police as the church authorities did not act on her repeated complaints against the clergyman.
However, the bishop has denied the charges.
Mulakkal, who heads the diocese of Jalandhar, wrote to the Vatican on Sunday asking to step down temporarily as protests and calls for his arrest grew. The Vatican accepted his request on Thursday.
"He is charged with rape," said Kochi's inspector general of police, Vijay Sakhare.
A Vatican spokesman said he had no immediate comment on the matter.
The arrest comes at a time when the state's Christian community is reeling from a string of cases - including the arrests of five priests last month on allegations of sexual assault. Their church said it believed the priests were innocent.
Outside India, the Catholic Church is facing sexual abuse scandals in the United States, Chile, Australia, Germany and other countries.
Pope Francis has summoned the heads of national Catholic bishops from around the world to the Vatican to discuss the protection of minors at an extraordinary meeting from Feb. 21-24.
Mulakkal, 54, was ordained as a priest in 1990 in the northern Indian Punjab state and was elevated as the bishop of the Diocese of Jalandhar five years ago.
