CHITRADURGA: The investigation officer in the Pocso case against Murugha Mutt pontiff Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru and others has clearly fixed charges of sexual assault in the chargesheet filed in court. Police investigating the case filed charges against the pontiff, former secretary of SJM educational institutions Paramashivaiah and hostel warden Rashmi. The officer said investigation is going on against the third accused, a 17-year-old minor, and fifth accused Gangadharaiah, an advocate against whom evidence is being gathered. Police collected information and witness accounts of 84 people, including teachers, hostel inmates and others.
Substantiating the move to file two chargesheets, the officer said while one girl belongs to OBC community, another belongs to Scheduled Caste, hence a separate chargesheet including Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, was filed. The Religious Institutions (Prevention of Misuse) Act, 1988, has also been violated and Section 3(f) and Section 7 have also been invoked in the chargesheet. As per the 161 statements given by the victims, the chargesheet highlights a 17-year-old girl accusing the pontiff of sexually harassing her in 2018 and 2020, and another victim stating that she was harassed in 2021 and 2022. It also implicates hostel warden Rashmi and then SJM secretary Paramashivaiah for trying to destroy evidence, despite knowing that illegal activity was going on.
The chargesheet states that the accused misused his position and would get the girls alone in his bedroom, where he seduced them with chocolate, then raped and threatened them. One victim said she was forced to stay behind in the room after night tuition on the pretext of sweeping the room, and the pontiff would give fruits, and force her to disrobe and embrace her.
The chargesheet recorded that he used to consume liquor, and force them to wash his back inside the bathroom. He would give the warden a list of who should visit him on a particular day, and if the girl did not visit, she would be punished. Assistant public prosecutor Nagaveni said a partial chargesheet was given by police directly to court and the complete chargesheet is yet to be filed.
Cops visit NGO
Meanwhile, days after an alleged audio clip of Murugha Mutt authorities speaking to victims and their family members went viral on social media platforms, Chitradurga police on Thursday as part of an inquiry visited Odanai, a Mysuru-based NGO, which played a pivotal role in bringing the case to the fore.