Dharmasthala mass burial case
The Dharmasthala mass burial case is an ongoing investigation into allegations of murder, sexual violence and mass graves at Dharmasthala Temple in the Indian temple town of Dharmasthala in Karnataka state.
Background
Dharmasthala temple has been the subject to protests led by local families and political groups concerning sexual violence and murder victims and burials since the 1980s. According to Al Jazeera, protests have frequently regarded suppression by political figures. Protests occurred again in 2012 over the unsolved rape and murder of a 17-year-old teenage girl named Sowjanya; her family alleged that the offender was related to temple leadership.[1][2]
In June 2025, a 48-year-old Dalit man, who previously worked as a caretaker at Dharmasthala temple, said he had been forced to bury hundreds of bodies between 1995 and 2014,[3][1] under the threat of death.[4] The man, whose identity has been protected by a court, had been in hiding for 12 years.[1] He said victims, who included a schoolchild and a 20-year-old acid attack victim, were buried along the Netravathi River,[4] and that many female bodies bore signs of strangulation.[4]
The complaints triggered widespread controversy.[4] Pressure from public outrage and controversy resulted in a police investigation.[1] A police case was opened on July 4.[3] The complainant was granted police protection on July 10.[5] On July 11, they provided the remains of a body he said he exhumed personally.[5] The mother of Ananya Bhat, who went missing during a college trip in 2003, said she thought her daughter could be among the victims.[4][2]
Dharmasthala did not have a police station until 2016.[6]
Investigation
Legal experts and activists have criticised the investigation as not transparent and too small.[4][5] A court granted an injunction requested by a relative of temple leadership requesting the suppression of over 8,800 items of coverage about the allegations.[7] The police denied media reports suggesting that some officers had requested to be excluded from the investigation.[8]
According to human rights activist and lawyer S. Balan, there were at least 367 cases of people went missing or dead in Dharmasthala.[9][10]
References
- ^ a b c d Sharma, Yashraj (22 July 2025). "How an Indian temple town is at the centre of hundreds of alleged murders". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 24 July 2025. Retrieved 23 July 2025.
- ^ a b Kathju, Junaid (22 July 2025). "Mass grave scandal, cover-up claims rock southern Indian state". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
- ^ a b "Dharmasthala burial case: Advocates of complainant favour SIT probe". The Hindu. 15 July 2025. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 21 July 2025. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f Pavithran, Lekshmy (18 July 2025). "Who is the whistle‑blower? He buried the bodies—now he's exposing a dark Dharmasthala secret". Gulf News. Archived from the original on 21 July 2025. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ a b c "Burial of bodies in Dharmastala: Complainant produces some skeletal remains". The Hindu. 12 July 2025. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 16 July 2025. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
- ^ Dev, Arun (25 July 2025). "Tough challenges await SIT probing mass burial claims in Dharmasthala". Hindustan Times. Bengaluru. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
- ^ Rajendran, Nandini Chandrashekar,Dhanya (21 July 2025). "Dharmasthala temple Dharmadhikari's brother gets gag order to delete over 8,800 links". The News Minute. Retrieved 23 July 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Dharmasthala burials case: 'No police officer has sought to be excluded from SIT'". The Hindu. 21 July 2025. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 23 July 2025.
- ^ Fatimah, Midhat (25 July 2025). "India: Did temple officials cover up a mass murder?". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
- ^ Pinto, Nolan Patrick (26 July 2025). "SIT commences Dharmasthala 'secret burials' probe, full officer roster revealed". The South First. Retrieved 26 July 2025.