MANGALURU: The Special Investigation Team (SIT), which is investigating the Dharmasthala mass burial case, conducted exhumation at spot numbers 7 and 8 in Dharmasthala village on Friday. However, their efforts allegedly yielded no results, as no human remains were found.
The SIT took the witness-complainant to the alleged burial site no. 7 at around 11:30 a.m. and began digging for possible human remains using manual labour and a mini excavator.
The SIT maintained secrecy during the exhumation, and mobile usage at the site was prohibited except for a few SIT officials. After digging for almost two hours there was no trace of any human remains, and the exhumation at the site was concluded.
Later, following lunch break, the SIT moved to the next alleged burial site, no. 8, located by the roadside near the Nethravathi river. No skeletal remains were allegedly found there either. The exhumation concluded at around 5:30 p.m. at site no. 8.
Meanwhile, sources said the SIT team visited the Dharmasthala gram panchayat and collected documents related to Unnatural Death Reports (UDRs) from the period between 1995 and 2014, as claimed by the whistleblower in the case.
The human remains recovered by the SIT at spot no. 6 on Thursday were handed over to Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) experts from a private hospital in Manipal on Friday for further analysis.
It may be recalled that the whistleblower, the witness-complainant in the case and a former sanitation worker, has alleged that he was coerced into burying the bodies of victims of alleged rape and murder a decade ago in Dharmasthala village. A case was registered at Dharmasthala police station on July 4, and the SIT was formed to investigate the case on July 19.