Dharmasthala burials case: It's an international conspiracy, says BJP

Time of India

16 hours ago

Bengaluru: Opposition BJP Thursday claimed the investigation into alleged mass murders in Dharmasthala was part of another attempt to defame and demean Hindu religious institutions and alleged a network of "urban Naxals and foreign nationals" was behind the conspiracy.
During a half-hour debate in the assembly on the case, BJP members said vested interests were attempting to hurt Hindu sentiments. However, home minister G Parameshwara insisted the
special investigation team
(SIT) was formed to get to the truth "and not play politics" and that a detailed reply would be presented Monday.
Opposition leader R Ashoka called it "a national conspiracy". "They began with Tirupati with the seven hills, then went on to Shani Shingnapura and reached Sabarimala, where women were encouraged to enter the premises.
Now, the toolkit is trying to defame Dharmasthala Manjunatha temple and the trust," Ashoka said.
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Former minister V Sunil Kumar said that in the name of freedom of speech, YouTubers were hurting Hindu religious sentiments. He accused conspirators of using the 2012 Soujanya murder case, in which the accused was released for lack of evidence, as an excuse to defame Dharmasthala temple and its trust. "A single remark of alleged communal disharmony against a certain community results in our Hindu workers being booked and sent to jail.
But when it comes to remarks posted on social media hurting Hindu sentiments, not a single case is booked," he said.
Ashoka accused the govt of being party to efforts to defame Hindu society and demanded that the administration present an interim report on the special investigation team's (SIT) probe. He also called for disclosure of the man behind the mask who is leading investigators to the alleged mass burial sites.
BJP sought a narco-analysis test on the masked man and demanded that the investigation be handed over to National Investigation Agency (NIA), alleging the involvement of foreign funding for "small-time accusers" and YouTubers.
In response, Parameshwara said: "We have as much faith and belief as you, or even more, in Dharmasthala Manjunatha and the Dharmadhikari Veerendra Hegde's philanthropic and religious efforts. We only want to get to the bottom of the truth."
Deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar said the govt stood firmly with the Dharmasthala temple and its trust, and that the probe was intended to put all allegations permanently to rest.
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