Dharmasthala horror: Key witness records statement, hands over skeletal remains

Belthangady

A former sanitation worker who made sensational claims of having buried several bodies—many of them women and girls—at the Dharmasthala temple premises over two decades, recorded his statement before a magistrate on Friday in Belthangady taluk. The man also handed over skeletal remains, reportedly exhumed by him, to the local police.

The statement was recorded in a closed courtroom before the Principal Civil Judge and Judicial Magistrate First Class, Belthangady, under Section 183 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). His lawyers, however, objected strongly to being denied permission to accompany him during the proceeding.

In a statement to the media, advocates Ojasvi Gowda and Sachin Deshpande expressed concern that the court had disallowed their presence despite specific requests. “He is illiterate, unfamiliar with court procedures, and had clearly expressed difficulty with the process. Yet, the magistrate proceeded without us,” the lawyers said.

The complainant, whose identity has not been disclosed for security reasons, had previously alleged that he was forced to bury numerous bodies between 1995 and 2014 while working at the Dharmasthala temple. He claimed many of the deceased were women and girls, and that several bore signs of sexual assault.

Sources confirmed that skeletal remains have been handed over to the police. A team of forensic experts arrived in Belthangady on Friday following the developments.

The man had first filed a complaint through his lawyers on July 3, offering to lead investigators to the burial sites on the condition that he be granted protection under the Witness Protection Scheme, 2018. This protection was formally extended to him by the police on July 10.

The Dharmasthala police registered a case on July 4 and had previously attempted to record his statement on July 10, but the process was stalled due to a breakdown in negotiations between the police and his legal team.

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