Denied entry to a convent near Aluva after a 10-hour wait, a 40-year-old Catholic nun was reportedly forced to seek refuge at an orphanage on Friday.
The nun, a native of Kannur, landed in Kochi on Friday morning from Italy where she was serving at a convent.
Before this, she was attached to a monastery at Pinjore in Madhya Pradesh, where she worked as teacher for five years.
Harassment complaints
She alleged that she was sent to Italy in 2012 after she complained of harassment by a priest.
However, she had to return after being defrocked and ordered to leave for India, she said.
On Friday morning, on landing in Kochi, she visited the convent near Aluva seeking entry. However, the convent authorities allegedly flung her belongings outside and asked her to leave immediately.
Police version
The nun waited at the gate for nearly 10 hours but she was firmly told that she was unwelcome.
With local support, she later took refuge at an orphanage near Athani.
Though she claimed to the media that the Aluva police had intervened to request the convent authorities to allow her to stay for two days, the police denied knowledge of any such incident.