SIT to begin fresh probe into Chinnayya’s statement, no report submitted yet

Bengaluru

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Dharmasthala mass burial case will now begin a fresh investigation into accused Chinnayya’s new statement recorded before the magistrate in Belthangady court under Section 183 of the Bharatiya Nagarika Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) 2023.

SIT sources clarified to blrpost.com that no report or chargesheet has been submitted in this case. A source stressed the SIT will not simply act based on Chinnayya’s new statement, as he has already been booked for perjury and has a history of lying. Any statement made by him before the court is subject to verification. The SIT will have to verify each and every word before initiating action.

Investigators also learnt during the probe that Chinnayya allegedly cheated Soujanya activists. The SIT will commence its investigation once it receives a copy of the new statement. The probe may be done expeditiously if Chinnayya his statement had claimed that activists forced him to file a complaint and make allegations, as the SIT has already questioned several activists and collected material. However, if the statement is different or unrelated to activists—even partly—the investigation could drag on. Either way, a fresh probe is considered necessary.

It may be recalled that the state government set up the SIT on July 19 to investigate allegations after Chinnayya filed a complaint at Dharmasthala police station and gave a statement under Section 183 before the magistrate. He had initially alleged that he was forced to bury bodies illegally. The team exhumed at least 15 sites and recovered two skeletal remains, both identified as male. Later, Chinnayya claimed that the skull he had presented as evidence in court was handed to him by Vittal Gowda and others, and that he had buried bodies legally. Following this volte-face, the SIT booked him under sections related to perjury and forgery.

No Report submitted

The SIT clarified that it has not submitted any chargesheet or interim report to either the court or the government. A few days ago, Dharmadhikari Veerendra Heggade had claimed that the truth had emerged because of the probe, even thanking the government for forming the SIT.

However, an SIT source refuted his claim, saying nothing conclusive has come out yet. Even in the High Court, during the hearing of a writ of mandamus, the SIT informed the judge that “it is yet to unearth conspiracy, if there was any.” The SIT is treating this case as perjury, not conspiracy.