MANGALURU: The legal counsel representing Sujatha Bhat — mother of Ananya Bhat, an MBBS student who went missing under mysterious circumstances in Dharmasthala a decade ago — has urged the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to deploy Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) at locations previously identified and excavated by the complainant witness in the mass burial case.
Advocate N Manjunath, in a press communiqué, said: “As the witness himself has stated, he left Dharmasthala in 2014. The Dharmasthala region experiences heavy rainfall and there is a high possibility of soil shifting and accumulation from one place to another. Since considerable changes have occurred in the forest area over approximately 11 years, there is a high probability that the landmarks the witness had relied on in his memory may have changed or shifted.”
“Therefore, as we previously petitioned on July 29, 2025, we request the deployment of the most advanced Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) available in India to detect skeletal remains at the already excavated locations and in the surrounding areas,” he said.
He further requested that the SIT use GPR units — comparable in size to machines used for clearing grass and weeds and operable by a small team — to detect skeletal remains both at the previously excavated locations and in adjacent areas.
The counsel also commended the SIT for the ongoing excavation process.
“Many experts anticipate that the SIT, led by Pronab Mohanty, will implement GPR technology. We have faith and confidence that the Karnataka Government and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will support the SIT in deploying GPRs,” he said.
