The complainant along with his advocates arrived in a car to the site
Dharmasthala horror: Complainant appears at mass grave site, demands exhumation, police fail to turn up
Dharmasthala
Days after the complainant in the Dharmasthala mass burial case recorded his statement before the Principal Civil Judge and Judicial Magistrate First Class, Belthangady, under Section 183, he visited the alleged burial site and appealed to the police to exhume the dead bodies.
The complainant, accompanied by his advocates, arrived at the site at 3 PM on Thursday and invited the Dharmasthala police to carry out the exhumation. However, to their surprise, the police did not appear at the location. The complainant, a former sanitation worker with the Dharmasthala Temple Administration, had filed a plaint on July 3. The police registered a First Information Report (FIR) on July 4.
Also read: (Dharmasthala deaths: 474 suicides in 12 years, 90 women among the dead in temple town, RTI reveals)
According to the FIR accessed by BLR.POST, the complainant alleged that he was coerced into burying the bodies of hundreds of individuals, including women, during his tenure. He further claimed that several of the bodies showed signs of sexual abuse. He worked with the institution between 1995 and 2014.
On July 11, he recorded his statement before the court under Section 183 and submitted skeletal remains—dug up by him—as evidence to the police.
Also read: (Dharmasthala horror: Key witness records statement, hands over skeletal remains)
Meanwhile, Karnataka State Commission for Women Chairperson Nagalakshmi Choudhary has written to the state government requesting the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Director General of Police (DGP) Pronab Mohanty, an IPS officer known for his integrity.
With no visible action from the police regarding the exhumation, the complainant and his legal team waited at the site for over an hour before leaving. On the other hand Sujatha Bhat, mother of Ananya Bhat has also filed complaint with the police. She alleged that Ananya Bhat went missing 22 years ago from Dharmasthala and wants the remains of her daughter.