Dharmasthala 'deaths': SIT probe if cops suggest, says CM Siddaramaiah

Mysuru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the government will not yield to any pressure in the alleged Dharmasthala mass murder case. "We will act according to the law. We will form a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the case if the police recommends it," he said. 

Speaking at the Mysuru Airport on Friday regarding a recent complaint in the case, he said, "We will initiate action as per law based on a report by the Police. If they say that an SIT is needed, we will form it.

"The complainant has given a statement under Section 164 of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), that he has buried several bodies and he would show the places where they are buried."

When asked if there was any pressure from any quarters in the case, he said, "There is no pressure. Even if it is there, the government will not yield to any." 

About allegations by a retired judge on the delay in the arrest of the accused in the case, he said, "We can't act on mere allegations. We will act as per the law." 

A former sanitation worker from the SC community has claimed to have worked for the Dharmasthala temple administration from 1995 to 2014. He has claimed to have fled Dharmasthala in December 2014 and has filed a complaint on July 3 with the Dharmasthala police.

In the complaint, he has alleged that for over nearly two decades, influential people coerced him to bury or burn the bodies of more than 100 women, including minors, who bore signs of alleged sexual assault and violence. Chairperson of Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Women Dr Nagalakshmi Choudhary has written a letter on July 14 alleging police lapses in handling several such complaints in the region. A group of advocates on July 16 met the CM and submitted a memorandum demanding an SIT probe into the allegations by the complainant. 

Meanwhile, regarding the bomb threat mails to schools in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said, "I have asked the police to check if they were hoax threats. We are introducing a law to prevent the spread of fake information and also those who issue provocative statements, in order to initiate stringent action against them." 

When asked about the investigation report of Justice Michael D'Cunha on the stampede during the RCB victory celebrations around Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, the CM said, "I will comment about it after a Cabinet discussion. The report is submitted and a gist is given to all the ministers to study to take it up for a discussion in the Cabinet meeting."