A former sanitation worker, who claimed to have buried dozens of unidentified bodies in cases of suspicious deaths in Dharmasthala under the Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka between 1995 and 2014, appeared before a magistrate’s court in Belthangady on Friday to provide a statement.
Based on the former sanitation worker’s allegations of being involved in the disposal of bodies in suspicious deaths in Dharmasthala, the police filed a First Information Report (FIR) on July 4 but sought an official statement in court from the unidentified worker under the Criminal Procedure Code to substantiate the allegations and find a direction for investigations.
The unidentified former sanitation worker appeared in court wearing a mask and accompanied by his advocates. The advocates of the man, Ojasvi Gowda and Sachin Deshpande, had made allegations about the “secret burials” in letters to the police, media and courts.
Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara had earlier stated that formal investigations were yet to begin in the case since the sanitation worker had not appeared in court to provide a statement. The advocates for the sanitation worker had, however, argued that the FIR was enough for a probe.
The FIR was registered under section 211(a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which put the onus on the complainant to furnish all details regarding his allegations.
A release issued by the Dakshina Kannada police following the FIR said the complainant had stated that “he has disposed of several bodies, and is currently suffering from guilty consciousness” and that “he has agreed to locate the spots where bodies were disposed of if protection is provided to him and his family.”
According to the complaint, the man fled to a neighbouring state after 2014, fearing threats to his life and family. He has requested that he be given police protection, the bodies be exhumed, and the alleged deaths be investigated.
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The complainant alleged that his supervisor beat him and threatened him with murder in 1998 when he refused to bury bodies and suggested informing the police. He also claimed that he was forced to burn some bodies using diesel and bury others in various locations around Dharmasthala.
“I have buried hundreds of bodies, and the final rites were not performed respectfully. The guilt is haunting me, and I believe that the final rites should be performed to pave a respectful farewell to the deceased,” he said earlier in a letter sent to the police through his advocates.
The complainant has claimed that the crimes may have been committed by persons associated with the administration of the temple town of Dharmasthala.