THE lawyer for the woman at the centre of the Novena Church 'exorcism' case yesterday ended his cross-examination of a Catholic priest with a parting shot that created a stir in the courtroom.
Mr R.S. Bajwa, accusing Father Simon Tan of lying on the stand, told the priest: 'As far as I'm concerned, may God forgive you.'
Gasps could be heard in the public gallery, and lawyers for the other defendants in the lawsuit sprang from their seats to voice their objections.
Mr Anthony Lee bellowed: 'This is totally unnecessary, Your Honour. It's not proper for counsel to say that.'
Mr Denis Tan, looking agitated, demanded that Mr Bajwa say 'sorry', and the gallery murmured in agreement.
'He has insulted the man's religion,' Mr Tan added.
Mr Bajwa replied calmly: 'I offered him a blessing.'
Mr Lee retorted, his voice rising: 'He is in no position to give someone a blessing.'
This was when Justice Lee Seiu Kin stepped in, first telling Mr Lee that he could hear the goings-on, and then telling Mr Bajwa: 'I think we are on sensitive ground here. I want your undertaking that you will not repeat this with the next witness.'
Mr Bajwa agreed but did not apologise to the priest.
The hubbub capped Father Simon's second day of grilling by Mr Bajwa.
Again, the lawyer dwelt on whether the priest had conducted an exorcism on his client, Madam Amutha Valli Krishnan. He insisted that such a rite had taken place, while Father Simon maintained that he had only said a prayer for deliverance.
Father Simon explained that deliverance prayers are offered when a person is 'inflicted' by spirits but when it is not known if the subject is 'fully possessed'.
Mr Bajwa, accusing the priest of being 'reckless', argued that instead of going on for two hours, Father Simon should have called for an ambulance when Madam Valli began to throttle herself.
Father Simon told the court that in his 10 years as a priest, he had offered deliverance prayers 'at least five, six times', with one such session lasting five hours.
Mr Bajwa then said that with his experience, Father Simon should have anticipated that she would struggle and should have warned her family of the 'risks'.
The priest replied that every case was different: While some subjects were violent, he also had one who laughed through it all.
He rejected Mr Bajwa's suggestion that he was so focused on casting out spirits that he failed to see that Madam Valli was reacting badly.
The priest said: 'In my experience, I can't see how prayers can harm a person.'
The lawyer retorted: 'There are none so blind as those who will not see.'
