End of Sri Rama Sene?: 7 top functionaries resign as ‘Muthalik compromised in Sowjanya case’

Bengaluru 

Upset with Sri Rama Sene (SRS) National President Pramod Muthalik, about seven leaders have recently exited the organisation. Sources say these leaders have found evidence suggesting that Muthalik is allegedly compromised in Dharmasthala’s Sowjanya case.

The seven leaders who resigned from the right-wing organisation are: National Honorary President Sri Siddalinga Swamiji, State President Gangadhar Kulkarni, State General Secretary Anand Shetty Adyar, State General Secretary Raju Khanappanavar, State Vice President Mahalinganna Gunjigavi, State Organisational Secretary Amarnath (Bengaluru), and State Spokesperson and Bengaluru City President Bhaskar (Bengaluru).

Sri Rama Sene, founded on 11 July 2005, is a right-wing Hindutva outfit that shot to infamy after its members attacked the Amnesia pub in Mangaluru. Muthalik launched the organisation after parting ways with the Bajrang Dal.

One of the resigned members told blrpost.com: “We always had suspicions that in most cases Muthalik was collecting money, but now we have sufficient indirect evidence that he is compromised in the Sowjanya case.”

About two years ago, Muthalik visited Dharmasthala, voicing support for justice in the Sowjanya case, saying a Hindu girl had suffered at the hands of feudal lords. This appearance brought him attention, including from the Heggade family, which he allegedly exploited for personal benefit.

He was reportedly approached by someone closely linked to the Heggade family at a five-star hotel in Bengaluru. After that closed-door meeting, Muthalik conspicuously fell silent on Sowjanya. “We were informed about this meeting by a person who ferried Muthalik to that plush hotel,” said another leader.

For months afterward, top leaders discussed leaving the organisation. Every time they confronted him about the Sowjanya issue or SRS finances, Muthalik allegedly evaded answers. Convinced that he was using Hindutva as a mask for personal agendas, the leaders decided to walk out. “There is no scope for reconciliation,” one leader said.