MYSURU: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday said that the State Government was not opposed to the demand for setting up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged rape, murder, and mass burial of several women at Dharmasthala and surrounding areas in Dakshina Kannada between 1998 and 2014.
The CM said that the government will take a call on setting up the SIT based on the police investigation report. “If there is a need for setting up an SIT, we will do it,” the CM said.
Retired Supreme Court Justice Gopal Gowda had recently called for constituting an SIT to probe the allegations.
Speaking to media persons here, the CM said that the whistleblower, who was a sanitation staffer with the Dharmasthala temple administration, had gone into hiding for more than 10 years, has suddenly appeared before the police and made a statement under Section 164 of CrPC. The police have started the investigation and will submit the report, he said.
Asked about the police not making arrests based on the complaint, the CM said that the government cannot take a hurried decision based on the complaint of the person who has claimed that he had buried the bodies and had come forward to show the places where the bodies were buried.
When asked whether there is pressure from any quarter on the government in the Dharmasthala case, the CM said that there is no pressure on the government. “And even if there is pressure, the government will not budge,” said the CM.
The whistleblower, meanwhile, has written a letter to the Chief Justice of India pleading to ensure his safety under the Witness Protection Scheme and charging the police with leaking the statement he gave to the investigation officer. In his letter, the whistleblower has sought an immediate high-level investigation into the alleged leak of his statement.
The Dakshina Kannada police have approached court seeking permission to conduct brain mapping, fingerprint, and narco analysis tests on the whistleblower, subject to his consent.