Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru

Mangaluru, Sep 26: The Karnataka government's decision to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to reinvestigate the Dharmasthala Sowjanya rape and murder case has drawn strong objections from Sowjanya's mother, Kusumavathi, who has expressed dissatisfaction with the composition of the team and the officers appointed to it.

The state government constituted the SIT following the Supreme Court's order for a fresh investigation into the case. Kusumavathi has now questioned the inclusion of officers who have previously served in Dakshina Kannada (DK).

In a statement, Kusumavathi said, “We will always remain grateful to the honourable Supreme Court, which ordered a reinvestigation into the tragedy that befell my daughter Sowjanya. However, we are deeply dissatisfied with the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the state government for the reinvestigation.”

Who is on the SIT?

The state government has constituted the SIT under the leadership of Inspector General of Police (IGP) N Shashikumar. Mangaluru City police commissioner Sudheer Kumar Reddy, State Intelligence SP Nisha James, CID SP Lokesh Jagalsar and Bengaluru Rural additional SP Venkatesh Prasanna have been appointed as members.

The composition has triggered objections from Sowjanya's supporters and on social media, particularly over the inclusion of officers who have previously served in Dakshina Kannada. Some of those raising objections have also referred to certain officers as having controversial backgrounds.

SIT chief Shashikumar had earlier served as Mangaluru police commissioner. Venkatesh Prasanna had served several years ago as an inspector with the Dakshina Kannada CCB unit. Sudheer Kumar Reddy, who is currently Mangaluru police commissioner, is also part of the team.

Call for officers without district links

Those opposing the SIT's composition have called for officers without previous links to Dakshina Kannada to be selected, arguing that this would help ensure a fair and impartial investigation.

Kusumavathi's statement has added a fresh point of contention as the reinvestigation gets under way, with questions now being raised over the composition of the team entrusted with probing the case.

The Supreme Court's order for a fresh investigation had followed Kusumavathi's plea seeking a reinvestigation into the 2012 case.