BHARATA BHARATI

When the alleged incident of sexual abuse happened, Karnam Dhaman Kumar was serving as a chaplain in various churches in Germany according to a statement issued on April 24, 2025 by the Diocese of Münster. – Jahnavi

Karnam Dhaman Kumar, the bishop of the Diocese of Nalgonda in Telangana, has been barred from carrying out any priestly duties in a diocese in Germany after he was accused of sexual abuse. The allegation, which a complainant reported to the Diocese of Münster, Germany in March 2025, relates to the years 2005 to 2007.

In April this year, about a month before Dhaman was due to visit a parish in Germany where he had previously served as a priest, the Münster Diocese prohibited him from any priestly activities in the diocese until further notice. Münster is a city in Germany.

Dhaman Kumar was appointed as the Bishop of Nalgonda Diocese by Pope Francis in February 2024. At the time, he had been serving as a parish priest in the Diocese of Münster. He was ordained the Bishop of Nalgonda on April 30, 2024.

When the alleged incident of sexual abuse happened, Dhaman Kumar was serving as a chaplain in various churches in Münster, according to a statement issued on April 24, 2025 by the Diocese of Münster.

The Münster Diocese said its Intervention Officer also filed a report with the Münster Public Prosecutor’s office. Confirming the complaint, a spokesperson for the Münster Public Prosecutor told TNM that the investigation is underway.

“Since the allegations in question are said to have occurred a long time ago, it will also be necessary to examine whether any criminal offenses have already time-barred (the statute of limitations has expired),” the spokesperson said, adding that only after this has been assessed can they comment on whether they will initiate specific investigations for particular offences.

Dhaman Kumar served at the Münster Diocese first from 2001 to 2012, and after various assignments in India, again from 2017 to 2020, when he served as a pastor. He moved to the parish of St. Bartholomäus in Essen (Oldenburg) in 2020.

In its statement, the Münster Diocese had that as per the rules for reporting sexual abuse in the Catholic Church issued by Pope Francis in , “the diocese in which the allegations are made is obligated to inform both the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) in Rome.” The DDF is the Vatican office responsible for handling complaints of sexual abuse by members of the clergy.

The Münster Diocese said they were also required to inform the Metropolitan Archbishop of the region in which the accused is residing. In Dhaman Kumar’s case, the Nalgonda Diocese falls under the purview of the Archdiocese of Hyderabad.

“In the case of the Bishop of Nalgonda, this is the Archbishop of Hyderabad, Cardinal Anthony Poola. The Diocese of Münster has fulfilled these obligations. Cardinal Poola must now request the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith to initiate an investigation into the case,” the statement from the Münster diocese has said.

In a letter to Dhaman Kumar dated April 17, 2025 which TNM has seen, the Münster diocesan administrator Antonius Hamers informed the Bishop of Nalgonda that he was forbidden from carrying out any priestly duties in the entire area of the Münster Diocese till further notice, referring to the sexual abuse allegation reported to the Münster public prosecutor.

The letter refers to Dhaman Kumar’s plan to travel to Germany in May 2025 to visit the parish of St. Bartholomäus, where he had served as a priest from 2020 to 2024.

The diocesan administrator also mentions that a copy of the letter has been sent to the DDF, that the Archbishop of Hyderabad, Cardinal Anthony Poola, would be informed, and that ecclesiastical proceedings would be initiated.

However, when TNM approached the Archdiocese of Hyderabad, they claimed that the Archbishop had not received any such letter from Germany officially informing them about the allegation. They said they had only heard of the allegations through social media.

Dhaman Kumar was born in Viziagaram, Andhra Pradesh. He belongs to the Order of the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales.

According to the rules issued by Pope Francis in 2019, all Catholic dioceses world over were required to set up an accessible system for reporting sexual abuse by June 1, 2020.

If the accused individual is a bishop, as per these rules, the Metropolitan Archbishop receives a mandate from the Vatican to investigate, according to Vatican News. The rules also require investigations into sexual abuse allegations to be completed within 90 days.

The new norms were laid down following a meeting on the Protection of Minors in the Church in February 2019, convened by Pope Francis to address prevention of sexual abuse of minors by members of the clergy.

Dhaman Kumar has not responded to TNM’s calls or messages regarding the issue. The article will be updated if we receive a response from him. – The News Minute, 24 June 2025

› Jahnavi is an assistant news editor at The News Minute, Bengaluru.