The allegations of a dreadful rape-murder and mass burial in the city of calm temples in Karnataka have created a stir. The allegations of a cleaning worker -turned -informer have shocked the society that between 1998 and 2014, he was forced to bury and burn hundreds of bodies, most of which were from women and minors, and burnt, many of which had marks of sexual harassment and violence. The outrage of the workers and lawyers has become even faster, due to which the Karnataka government has ordered an inquiry into a special investigation team (SIT) of the allegations of mass burial, in which members of the Dharmasthal temple administration were allegedly involved.
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the Government of Karnataka on Sunday intensified its investigation with negotiations and interrogation to investigate the allegations of “bodies buried” in the shrine “in the shrine. The person who confessed to burying the dead bodies in the shrine appeared before the SIT on the second day for questioning. The SIT team along with its chief Pranab Mohanty – Director General of Police (Internal Security Division) also attended, who assessed at the ground level and reviewed the progress with the authorities.
Officials said the team held a detailed discussion with the local authorities, investigated the records of the missing persons and also reviewed the previous reports of the suspected deaths in the area. He said that investigators also interacted with the residents of Dharmasthal and its surroundings and inspected the specific sites which are feared to be associated with the allegations. The SIT was formed by the state government after claims of alleged mass murder, rape and burial of dead bodies in the last two decades. The SIT headed by Mohanty includes Deputy Inspector General of Police (Recruitment) MN Anucheth, IPS officer Soumyalata SK and Jitendra Kumar Dayama.
20 policemen- inspectors, sub-inspectors, head constables and constables from Udupi, South Kannada and North Kannada have also been included in the SIT. A former sweeper has claimed that he had worked in the shrine between 1995 and 2014 and was forced to bury several bodies in the shrine that included bodies of women and minors. The identity of this sweeper has not been revealed. He alleged that some bodies had sexual harassment marks. The scavenger has also given a statement in this regard to the magistrate.