WARSAW, April 27: The state agency overseeing Poland’s communist-era files on Wednesday accused a Polish priest at the Vatican of spying on the late Pope John Paul for his country’s secret services. Father Konrad Hejmo informed on the Polish Pontiff during the 1980s when Poland’s communist rulers battled against the Solidarity movement, the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) said at a news conference.

Father Hejmo was not immediately available for comment, but Polish public television said the priest had denied the allegations.

The Vatican also declined to comment on the Polish report.

Poles are still mourning the death on April 2 of John Paul, credited with inspiring the Solidarity trade union movement’s struggle against communism.

“The IPN has documents that show Father Konrad Stanislaw Hejmo was cooperating during the 1980s with the security services,” said Leon Kieres, director of the IPN.

For years, Father Hejmo — a member of the Vatican circle of Polish clergy — has headed the Polish “Pilgrimage House”, a hostel for visiting Poles.

He also won wide media coverage in Poland for his “insider knowledge” of the state of John Paul’s failing health.

The IPN did not say what information Hejmo handed over, but Marek Lasota, an IPN member from Krakow who works on secret service involvement with the Polish Church, said Hejmo may not have given much away.

“Hejmo didn’t have very close access. He was as close (to John Paul) as other Polish priests in the Vatican were. I think he rather gave away second-hand information,” he said.

In his research, Lasota found the secret services had tried to discredit the Pope’s in the 1980s by producing fake diaries from a woman purported to have been having an affair with him.

The late pontiff, who supported pro-democracy activists while an archbishop in Krakow, continued to help as leader of the Roman Catholic Church, meeting Solidarity leader Lech Walesa several times during visits to Poland.

He is widely regarded as a prime influence in the collapse of communism in Poland and throughout eastern Europe. —Reuters