Dharmasthala case: Complainant remanded in 15-day judicial custody

Mangaluru: The JMFC court in Belthangady on Saturday remanded the complainant-witness to judicial custody after he was produced by the Special Investigation Team (SIT). 

He was subsequently shifted to Shivamogga prison under tight security.

The SIT’s 15-day custody of the complainant-witness ended on Saturday. He had been arrested on August 23 and was initially remanded in SIT custody till September 3, which was later extended till September 6.

Sources confirmed that the complainant-witness has now been remanded to judicial custody, while the investigation into the Dharmasthala mass burial case will continue.

The SIT sources said the team questioned Vittal Gowda, uncle of Sowjanya (a second PUC who was allegedly raped and murdered), on Friday night, and continued interrogating activists Jayant T, Girish Mattanavar, and YouTuber Abhishek on Saturday.

The SIT is intensifying its investigation into the alleged Dharmasthala mass burial case, pursuing multiple leads and questioning several individuals.

The probe is being carried out rigorously daily, with officials verifying documents, recording statements from people connected to the case, and preparing detailed reports to piece together the sequence of events, sources said.

The SIT has maintained that it is exploring every possible angle and is expected to summon more individuals for questioning in the coming days.

The protection granted to the complainant-witness under the Witness Protection Scheme, 2018, is set to expire on September 9. “Since this is a major case, the protection extended to the complainant-witness may have to be continued,” the SIT sources said.

Any modification to the protection order will be decided by the competent authority based on the latest report from the DySP of Bantwal Sub-Division regarding threats to the complainant, they added.