Push for murdered Indian nun to be canonised

The grave of a nun murdered in central India 21 years ago has been exhumed as part of a process that may eventually lead to her canonisation, reports Ucanews.

The Franciscan Clarist nun, now widely known as Sr Rani, was murdered aboard a bus in 1995 by a hired assassin who stabbed her at least 50 times. 

Her work among poor landless people had upset some landlords who did not like her helping locals become more self-reliant.

Sr Rani, 41, was buried outside Sacred Heart Church in Udainagar, where she worked. 

But now her grave has been exhumed as part of the canonisation process and her remains have been moved to a newly built tomb inside the church.

"The grave of Sr Rani Maria Vattalil was exhumed and her mortal remains were moved inside the church on November 18 as part of the process for her beatification," said Bishop Chacko Thottumarikal of Indore.

In order to canonise someone the Vatican has to verify the grave of the candidate to make sure they were buried in the place attributed to them. Traditionally, Catholics also open the grave to see if the body was uncorrupted.

Hundreds of people have been flocking to her new tomb seeking the nun's intercession. 

Several people, including non-Christians, have accepted her as a saintly person who led a heroic life, the Bishop said.

Sr Rani, who started working in the mission of northern India in 1975, came to Udainagar in 1992 where she fought local moneylenders who were exploiting local people.

Landlords and moneylenders hired Samunder Singh to murder her. He was later convicted and sent to jail for 12 years.

He repented while in jail and said that he wanted to meet the nun's family. 

Sr Rani's sister, also a nun, tied a rakhi (a thread that represents siblinghood) on Singh, accepting him into her family.