The trail of an ATM card and a PAN card found at one of the 13 sites indicated by a former sanitation worker as spots where dead bodies were allegedly buried in secret in Karnataka’s Dharmasthala has led a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to a family in Nelamangala near Bengaluru.
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The SIT probe has revealed that the ATM card belonged to a woman identified as Sidalakshamma, who lives near Dabaspet in rural Bengaluru’s Nelamangala, while the PAN card belonged to her son Suresh, who succumbed to alcoholism in March and was buried in Nelamangala.
The probe revealed that Suresh lost the cards during a visit to Dharmasthala, and they were probably washed up on the shore of the Netravati River, sources said. Sidalakshamma has stated that her son was frequently thrown out of the house over his drinking habit.
“He was sick with jaundice for around three years and did not go anywhere. We kept him out of the house, saying that he must earn his living. We had gone to Dharmasthala five years ago as a family. He was using my ATM card then and he told me that the PAN and ATM cards were lost,” Sidalakshamma told local media on Friday.
“When I learned that he had lost the ATM card, I got it blocked,” she said, adding, “He died in my house and was buried in my father’s property.”
The SIT found the cards while digging at the first of 13 sites indicated by the former sanitation worker. “We have taken note of sources confirming the recovery of a torn red blouse, a PAN card, and an ATM card at a depth of approximately 2.5 feet at Site No.1 yesterday,” N Manjunath, the former sanitation worker’s lawyer, had said in a statement three days ago.
“The recovery of identifiable items like a PAN card and an ATM card provides an avenue for further enquiry, and we trust the SIT will pursue these vital leads with the utmost urgency,” the advocate said.
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The search for dead bodies at the sites indicated by the whistleblower saw breakthroughs on Thursday and Friday when skeletal remains were found during the exhumation process carried out by the SIT.
No remains were detected at five sites, while some remains were found at the sixth location on Thursday. The former sanitation worker has alleged that he was forced to bury bodies and threatened against approaching the police.
According to sources, bone fragments were found at the spot, apart from pieces of cloth. The exhumation was carried out along the banks of River Netravati, close to the temple town of Dharmasthala. The remains were sealed and sent for further forensic analysis.
SIT officials have been carrying out exhumations at various locations identified by the complainant since Tuesday.
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The whistleblower filed a complaint at the Dharmasthala police station last month, following which a First Information Report (FIR) was registered on July 4.