SIT begins site inspections over 'mass burials' in Dharmasthala

    Dharmasthala (Karnataka), Jul 28 (PTI) A team of police officials from the SIT, constituted by the Karnataka government to probe alleged mass burial sites in Dharmasthala, began site inspections on Monday, police said.
    Accompanied by land records officials, local police, and district authorities, the Special Investigation Team visited multiple locations, including the bathing ghats of the Nethravati river at the entrance of Dharmasthala.
    The SIT, along with Kadaba Tahsildar Prabhakara Khajure, conducted a mahazar (preliminary site inspection) at the Nethravati riverbank, based on complaints lodged by local groups alleging that parts of the land may have been used for mass burials.
    The inspection was ordered by Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner Darshan H V after the matter gained local and media attention.
    The complaint alleged that skeletal remains could be buried beneath a portion of the ghat area where excavation had reportedly been carried out in the past.
    No remains were found during the inspection, police said, adding that a detailed investigation involving forensic experts will be conducted in the coming days.
    The SIT was constituted by the state government to probe serious allegations of mass murder, sexual assault, and burials in Dharmasthala, reportedly spanning over two decades.
    According to police, a former sanitation worker who claimed he was forced to bury bodies in Dharmasthala appeared before the SIT for a second round of questioning on July 27.
    SIT chief Pronab Mohanty, Director General of Police (Internal Security Division), joined the on-ground team to oversee the inspection and review the progress of the inquiry.
    The SIT also comprises Deputy Inspector General of Police (Recruitment) M N Anucheth and IPS officers Soumyalatha S K and Jitendra Kumar Dayama.
    Police said the team held extensive discussions with local officials, reviewed missing persons records, and re-examined previous reports of suspicious deaths in the area.
    Twenty police personnel—including inspectors, sub-inspectors, head constables, and constables—from Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, and Uttara Kannada districts have been deployed to support the investigation.
    The case stems from the testimony of the former sanitation worker, whose identity remains undisclosed, who alleged that between 1995 and 2014 he was coerced into burying several bodies in Dharmasthala—some of which, he claimed, showed signs of sexual violence.
    He has submitted a statement before a magistrate in connection with these allegations.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)