Bengaluru: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigating allegations of mass burials in Dharmasthala has arrested the complainant in the case after a forensic report contradicted his sworn statement.
The 48-year-old sanitation worker was taken into custody on Saturday, a day after his protection under the Witness Protection Scheme was withdrawn. He has been charged with perjury.
Investigators said the arrest followed a forensic report that contradicted his sworn statement before a Belthangady magistrate on July 11. At the time, he presented a skull and bones, claiming they belonged to a woman who had been sexually assaulted.
“The analysis later confirmed the remains were of a man. The material he produced did not match his statement,” an officer involved in the inquiry said.
The SIT had questioned the man on Friday before detaining him. Other sanitation workers who were employed alongside him between 1995 and 2014 are also being questioned, along with medical personnel who supervised burials in the Banglagudde area of Dharmasthala. Among them is Dr. Mahabalesh Shetty, head of forensic medicine at K.S. Hegde Medical College, who conducted autopsies on dozens of decomposed bodies during that period.
The investigation began on July 2, when the sanitation worker filed a complaint in Kollegal alleging that more than 100 bodies -- including victims of assault and murder -- were buried under pressure from “influential people.” He reiterated those claims before a magistrate on July 11, leading police to seize skeletal remains that he carried to the court.
{{/usCountry}}The investigation began on July 2, when the sanitation worker filed a complaint in Kollegal alleging that more than 100 bodies -- including victims of assault and murder -- were buried under pressure from “influential people.” He reiterated those claims before a magistrate on July 11, leading police to seize skeletal remains that he carried to the court.
{{/usCountry}}Following the complaint, the Karnataka government set up an SIT on July 19 under Director General of Police Pronab Mohanty. Excavations were carried out at 17 locations in Banglagudde and nearby areas. Only partial skeletal remains of men were recovered, including one believed to be a suicide case.
Home minister G. Parameshwara confirmed the arrest but declined to comment further, saying “the SIT was responsible for establishing the facts.”
A Belthangady court has granted the SIT 10 days of custody, until September 3.
In a separate development, the SIT has provided security to Sujatha Bhat at her home in Bengaluru. She had earlier claimed her daughter was missing in Dharmasthala but revised her statement on Friday, telling investigators she would disclose the full details.