A Catholic priest in a central Indian diocese, facing a criminal case over sharing a video on strife-torn Manipur, was found hanging

A Catholic priest in a central Indian diocese, facing a criminal case over sharing a video on strife-torn Manipur, was found hanging from a tree on Sept. 14, church officials said. 

The body of Father Anil Francis, 40, was found a day after he arrived at the bishop's house to attend the two-day retreat, said Father Sabu Puthenpurackal, public relations officer of Sagar diocese.

When he was found missing, a search was carried out and the body was found hanging from a tree, said the Sagar diocesan priest, which functions under the Eastern rite Syro-Malabar Church in Madhya Pradesh state.

Police brought down the body and sent it for a post-mortem.

Puthenpurackal's Sept 15 statement said the diocese is yet to get the autopsy report from the police.

“We do not know what made him take such an extreme step,” said Bishop James Athikalam of Sagar.

One of Father Francis' colleagues said he was under tremendous pressure after police in Madhya Pradesh registered a criminal defamation case against him for sharing a social media post on the strife-torn Manipur state, where ethnic Hindus and Christians are fighting a sectarian battle.

Close to 200 people were killed, more than 50,000 displaced and two Christian women were paraded naked in the violence that began in the north-eastern hilly state on May 3.

"This could not be a reason to take such a step,” a diocesan priest, who did not want to be named, told