Advocate seeks helpline for SIT in Dharmasthala mass burial probe

Bengaluru

Advocate Manjunath N, who is representing Sujatha Bhat—the mother of Miss Ananya Bhat, a first-year MBBS student who went missing during a visit to the Dharmasthala temple—made the appeal in a public statement issued on Monday.

The State government recently constituted the SIT to investigate the mass burial allegations and associated disappearances, including the case of Ananya Bhat. Since the formation of the SIT, the advocate said he has received multiple calls from concerned families who claim to have experienced disturbing incidents linked to Dharmasthala but are hesitant to approach their local police stations.

Also read: (SC petition seeks bar on Dharmasthala Temple Administrators from filing defamation cases in Karnataka)

In light of this, Advocate Manjunath requested the Government to not only create a public helpline that connects directly with the SIT but also formally notify the SIT’s office as a recognised police station. He pointed out that while SITs often function like police stations in practice, the absence of official notification allows accused persons to exploit legal technicalities and obtain stay orders from the courts.

The appeal aims to ensure smoother complaint registration for affected individuals and to prevent legal loopholes from hindering the progress of ongoing and future investigations.

The government is yet to respond to the request. The SIT’s probe into the Dharmasthala mass burial allegations is being closely followed by the public and the media, especially as more families come forward with claims related to the case.

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