Daijiworld Media Network – Bengaluru

Bengaluru, Nov 13: The Karnataka high court on Wednesday vacated the interim stay on further proceedings in the FIR registered in the Dharmasthala mass burials case, while directing the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to ensure that the petitioners are not harassed during the course of investigation.

Justice Mohammad Nawaz, who heard the matter, said that although the stay on the FIR stands vacated, the earlier direction restraining the SIT from harassing the petitioners — Girish Mattannavar, Mahesh Shetty Thimarodi, T Jayant, and Vittala Gowda — will continue. The court modified its interim order after taking into account the statement of objections filed by the SIT probing the case.

On October 30, the court had stayed the FIR in the case after the petitioners raised concerns that the magistrate’s permission, granted for investigation under Section 211A of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), was issued without adequate reasoning. Subsequently, the informant himself was arrested and named as the sole accused for falsification and conspiracy.

During the hearing, additional state public prosecutor (ASPP) B N Jagadeesha, representing the SIT, argued that the magistrate’s order was in accordance with the law and that there were serious and credible allegations against the petitioners and their associates. “Many of these allegations have been independently corroborated through detailed field investigations based on circumstantial and digital forensic evidence, and witness testimonies,” the ASPP stated. He further argued that challenging the proceedings initiated by the petitioners themselves was a travesty of justice, and the petitions deserved dismissal.

The FIR (Crime No. 39/2025) was registered under Section 211A of the BNS based on the informant’s statement claiming to have buried several bodies in and around Dharmasthala. Acting on this, the SIT exhumed 17 sites, but later concluded that the allegations were false.

In its detailed statement of objections, the SIT said that the Executive Magistrate exhibited due diligence and that the exhumations were conducted “to the complete satisfaction of the complainant and his support team, including lawyers.” The process was fully video recorded, and officers reportedly worked under adverse weather and terrain conditions to ensure accuracy.

The investigation further revealed that the human skull produced by the informant as evidence was not of a woman, as claimed, but of a male aged between 20 and 30 years, according to forensic reports from KMC Hospital, Mangaluru, and Victoria Hospital, Bengaluru. A further examination of the skull is underway.

Upon confrontation, the informant allegedly admitted that the complaint and statements were made under the instruction and connivance of the petitioners, including Thimarodi and others. The SIT said it found the complainant and petitioners complicit in offences punishable under Sections 336, 230, 231, 229, 227, 228, 240, 236, 233, and 248 of the BNS.

“A request was duly made to the magistrate to invoke the relevant provisions and permit continuation of the investigation,” the SIT’s statement noted. It added that the notice issued under Section 35(3) of the BNSS to the petitioners was valid, given the evidence linking them to the filing of the complaint.

The SIT maintained that the petitioners and their associates were attempting to derail the investigation by filing multiple writ petitions, as they were fearful of the truth being revealed.

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