Dharmasthala mass burials case: No officer has asked to leave the SIT, says Home Minister Parameshwara

Bengaluru: Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Monday said that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up to probe the alleged mass burials in Dharmasthala, a pilgrimage town in Dakshina Kannada, will do its job.

Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, the Home Minister said that the probe was initiated based on complaints. “If the probe doesn’t reveal anything, then we can communicate it to everyone, as BS Yediyurappa has already claimed. Let’s wait for the probe to complete.”

The government formed the SIT on Saturday, headed by Pronab Mohanty, Director General of Police (Internal Security Division).

Mohanty will be assisted by Deputy Inspector General of Police (Recruitment) MN Anucheth and IPS officers Soumyalatha SK and Jitendra Kumar Dayama, the order noted.

When asked about meeting Mohanty on Monday, he said: “The officer thanked me for the responsibility and assured me to do the job. That’s it. Once the SIT is formed, no instructions will be provided to them. They do their job independently.”

Parameshwra denies media reports

The Home Minister also refuted a media report claiming that two officers from the SIT were seeking to leave it due to “personal reasons”. "They are competent senior officers in respectable positions. None of them told me or wrote to the government that they won't be able to do the job," Parameshwara said.

Sources close to the SIT told DH that they were yet to officially take over the probe from the Dakshina Kannada police, as the team was just formed.