Dharmasthala burials case: Belthangady court asks SIT to submit final report

The Additional Civil Judge and Judicial Magistrate First Class Court, Belthangady, on Saturday asked the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Dharmasthala mass burials case to submit its final report, relating to perjury and criminal offences alleged against Chinnaiah and other accused persons, for it to take cognisance of the offences mentioned in the report submitted on November 20.

In the order, Additional Civil Judge and Judicial Magistrate First Class, Belthangady, T.H. Vijayendra, said the SIT filed the 3,900-page report, under Section 215 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Surakasha Sanhita on November 20 when the complainant Chinnaih was in judicial custody and there was a legal requirement for the SIT to file report within 90 days of the arrest. The court also took note of the SIT’s observation in the report that the remaining accused, Mahesh Shetty Thimarody, Girish Mattennavar, T. Jayanth, Vittal Gowda, and Sujatha Bhat, have not cooperated in the investigation.

Therefore at this stage, the court said it will not pass an order on the report filed by the SIT on November 20. The court asked the SIT to file its final report in the case.

On December 31, Dharmasthala Manjunatheswara temple spokesperson K. Parshwanath Jain filed an application seeking permission of the court to implead in the proceedings as the temple was a victim in the case.

On Saturday, activists Jayanth, Mattennavar, and another accused filed an application asking the court to hear them before taking cognisance of the SIT report. But later, the counsel for the applicants withdrew the same application.

Allowing the plea of prosecutor Divyaraj Hegde seeking time to file objection to the temple’s application, Mr. Vijayendra posted it to January 23. As the magistrate is going for regular judicial training, the case will come up before Additional Civil Judge and JMFC, Bantwal, who will be holding additional charge of the Belthangady court, on January 23.