Latest news with #Padmalatha
Observer
4 hours ago
- Observer
Indian police exhume human remains in mass-burial investigation
BENGALURU: Indian police have exhumed human remains in a temple town in the country's south, officials said, as part of an investigation into allegations that hundreds of murder and rape victims were secretly buried there from around the mid-1990s. The probe centres on Dharmasthala, home to an 800-year-old temple dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva in the state of Karnataka and is drawing headlines in media nationwide. A former cleaner at the temple told police last month that he had been forced by superiors to dispose of hundreds of bodies over two decades, many of them women and girls showing signs of sexual assault. His allegations were made in a police complaint dated July 4 and seen by Reuters. The man, whose identity authorities have withheld for safety reasons, fled Dharmasthala in 2014 but said he was compelled to speak out now because of lingering guilt. "If the skeletons now exhumed receive respectful funeral rites, those tormented souls will find peace and my sense of guilt could also decrease," he wrote in the complaint. The police did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the temple said it welcomed a thorough investigation and hoped police would "bring out true facts to light". In the complaint, the former cleaner accused temple officials of forcing him to dispose of the bodies and told police he would name the officials if they protected him and his family. Karnataka's interior minister told the state assembly on Monday that the protection was now in place. The former cleaner said he had secretly exhumed a skeleton from one of the burial sites to prove his claims. A special investigation team formed by the Karnataka government has so far recovered human remains from two of 16 suspected burial sites, according to two senior police officials familiar with the probe. They declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter. Karnataka's interior minister, Gangadharaiah Parameshwara, said the police have collected bone fragments, soil samples, and other material for testing from two sites thanks to the information from the former cleaner. "The analysis is ongoing. Only once that is complete can we say the investigation has truly begun," Parameshwara said. "My request is to not make this a religious matter." Sachin Deshpande, a lawyer for the complainant, told Reuters "they have found human remains where our client pointed and we are sure that the truth will come out". He declined to make his client available for an interview. The revelations have revived interest in older unsolved cases, including Padmalatha, a college student whose family alleged she was raped and murdered in Dharmasthala in 1986. Padmalatha, like many in India, went by one name. Her sister, Indravathi, said the family buried Padmalatha's body rather than cremating it according to Hindu custom, hoping that would help with any investigations later. "We hope that we will get justice one day for her abduction, rape and murder," said Indravathi, who uses only one name.
The Star
7 hours ago
- The Star
Indian police exhume human remains in mass-burial investigation
A former cleaner told the police in July he had been forced by superiors to dispose of hundreds of bodies. The case was drawing media attention across India. - Photo: Reuters BENGALURU, (India): Indian police have exhumed human remains in a temple town in the country's south, officials said, as part of an investigation into allegations that hundreds of murder and rape victims were secretly buried there from around the mid-1990s. The probe centres on Dharmasthala, home to an 800-year-old temple dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva in the state of Karnataka and is drawing headlines in media nationwide. A former cleaner at the temple told police last month that he had been forced by superiors to dispose of hundreds of bodies over two decades, many of them women and girls showing signs of sexual assault. His allegations were made in a police complaint dated July 4 and seen by Reuters. The man, whose identity authorities have withheld for safety reasons, fled Dharmasthala in 2014 but said he was compelled to speak out now because of lingering guilt. "If the skeletons now exhumed receive respectful funeral rites, those tormented souls will find peace and my sense of guilt could also decrease," he wrote in the complaint. The police did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the temple said it welcomed a thorough investigation and hoped police would "bring out true facts to light". In the complaint, the former cleaner accused temple officials of forcing him to dispose of the bodies and told police he would name the officials if they protected him and his family. Karnataka's interior minister told the state assembly on Monday that the protection was now in place. The former cleaner said he had secretly exhumed a skeleton from one of the burial sites to prove his claims. A special investigation team formed by the Karnataka government has so far recovered human remains from two of 16 suspected burial sites, according to two senior police officials familiar with the probe. They declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter. Karnataka's interior minister, Gangadharaiah Parameshwara, said the police have collected bone fragments, soil samples, and other material for testing from two sites thanks to the information from the former cleaner. "The analysis is ongoing. Only once that is complete can we say the investigation has truly begun," Parameshwara said. "My request is to not make this a religious matter." Sachin Deshpande, a lawyer for the complainant, told Reuters "they have found human remains where our client pointed and we are sure that the truth will come out". He declined to make his client available for an interview. The revelations have revived interest in older unsolved cases, including Padmalatha, a college student whose family alleged she was raped and murdered in Dharmasthala in 1986. Padmalatha, like many in India, went by one name. Her sister, Indravathi, said the family buried Padmalatha's body rather than cremating it according to Hindu custom, hoping that would help with any investigations later. "We hope that we will get justice one day for her abduction, rape and murder," said Indravathi, who uses only one name. - Reuters
AsiaOne
9 hours ago
- AsiaOne
Indian police exhume human remains in mass-burial investigation, Asia News
BENGALURU — Indian police have exhumed human remains in a temple town in the country's south, officials said, as part of an investigation into allegations that hundreds of murder and rape victims were secretly buried there from around the mid-1990s. The probe centres on Dharmasthala, home to an 800-year-old temple dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva in the state of Karnataka and is drawing headlines in media nationwide. A former cleaner at the temple told police last month that he had been forced by superiors to dispose of hundreds of bodies over two decades, many of them women and girls showing signs of sexual assault. His allegations were made in a police complaint dated July 4 and seen by Reuters. The man, whose identity authorities have withheld for safety reasons, fled Dharmasthala in 2014 but said he was compelled to speak out now because of lingering guilt. "If the skeletons now exhumed receive respectful funeral rites, those tormented souls will find peace and my sense of guilt could also decrease," he wrote in the complaint. The police did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the temple said it welcomed a thorough investigation and hoped police would "bring out true facts to light". In the complaint, the former cleaner accused temple officials of forcing him to dispose of the bodies and told police he would name the officials if they protected him and his family. Karnataka's interior minister told the state assembly on Monday that the protection was now in place. The former cleaner said he had secretly exhumed a skeleton from one of the burial sites to prove his claims. A special investigation team formed by the Karnataka government has so far recovered human remains from two of 16 suspected burial sites, according to two senior police officials familiar with the probe. They declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter. Karnataka's interior minister, Gangadharaiah Parameshwara, said the police have collected bone fragments, soil samples, and other material for testing from two sites thanks to the information from the former cleaner. "The analysis is ongoing. Only once that is complete can we say the investigation has truly begun," Parameshwara said. "My request is to not make this a religious matter." Sachin Deshpande, a lawyer for the complainant, told Reuters "they have found human remains where our client pointed and we are sure that the truth will come out". He declined to make his client available for an interview. The revelations have revived interest in older unsolved cases, including Padmalatha, a college student whose family alleged she was raped and murdered in Dharmasthala in 1986. Padmalatha, like many in India, went by one name. Her sister, Indravathi, said the family buried Padmalatha's body rather than cremating it according to Hindu custom, hoping that would help with any investigations later. "We hope that we will get justice one day for her abduction, rape and murder," said Indravathi, who uses only one name. [[nid:721393]]
New Straits Times
10 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Indian police exhume human remains in mass-burial investigation
BENGALURU: Indian police have exhumed human remains in a temple town in the country's south, officials said, as part of an investigation into allegations that hundreds of murder and rape victims were secretly buried there from around the mid-1990s. The probe centres on Dharmasthala, home to an 800-year-old temple dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva in the state of Karnataka and is drawing headlines in media nationwide. A former cleaner at the temple told police last month that he had been forced by superiors to dispose of hundreds of bodies over two decades, many of them women and girls showing signs of sexual assault. His allegations were made in a police complaint dated July 4 and seen by Reuters. The man, whose identity authorities have withheld for safety reasons, fled Dharmasthala in 2014 but said he was compelled to speak out now because of lingering guilt. "If the skeletons now exhumed receive respectful funeral rites, those tormented souls will find peace and my sense of guilt could also decrease," he wrote in the complaint. The police did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesman for the temple said it welcomed a thorough investigation and hoped police would "bring out true facts to light". In the complaint, the former cleaner accused temple officials of forcing him to dispose of the bodies and told police he would name the officials if they protected him and his family. Karnataka's interior minister told the state assembly yesterday that the protection was now in place. The former cleaner said he had secretly exhumed a skeleton from one of the burial sites to prove his claims. A special investigation team formed by the Karnataka government has so far recovered human remains from two of 16 suspected burial sites, according to two senior police officials familiar with the probe. They declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter. Karnataka's interior minister, Gangadharaiah Parameshwara, said the police have collected bone fragments, soil samples, and other material for testing from two sites thanks to the information from the former cleaner. "The analysis is ongoing. Only once that is complete can we say the investigation has truly begun," Parameshwara said. "My request is to not make this a religious matter." Sachin Deshpande, a lawyer for the complainant, told Reuters "they have found human remains where our client pointed and we are sure that the truth will come out". He declined to make his client available for an interview. The revelations have revived interest in older unsolved cases, including Padmalatha, a college student whose family alleged she was raped and murdered in Dharmasthala in 1986. Padmalatha, like many in India, went by one name. Her sister, Indravathi, said the family buried Padmalatha's body rather than cremating it according to Hindu custom, hoping that would help with any investigations later. "We hope that we will get justice one day for her abduction, rape and murder," said Indravathi, who uses only one name.
Hans India
4 days ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Unsolved crimes cast long shadow over pilgrimage centre
Mangaluru: Dharmasthala, a revered pilgrimage centre in Dakshina Kannada, is once again under scrutiny following renewed allegations of decades-long unsolved crimes, including rape, murder, and suspicious deaths. At a press conference, activist K. Dinesh Ganiga alleged that between 1970 and 2025, several high-profile cases in and around Dharmasthala remain unresolved. He cited the 1973 rape and murder of SDM College student Padmalatha, the 1986 petrol-burning murder of teacher Vedavalli, and the 2012 killings of elephant caretaker Narayana and his wife Yamuna. He also referred to the rape and murder of Soujanya in October 2012, a case that sparked statewide outrage. Ganiga further highlighted discrepancies between official police records and local panchayat reports, noting that from 2002 to 2012 alone, 452 unnatural deaths were recorded in Dharmasthala and Ujire. 'Despite the seriousness of these cases, no suspects have been convicted. The failure of the police has eroded public trust,' he accused political leaders of selectively raising the issue for religious or electoral gain while remaining silent during earlier society groups have now demanded that four key cases be handed over to a Special Investigation Team (SIT). To press for this, activists announced a statewide mobilisation under the banner 'Ujire Chalo' on August 24, calling for transparency, justice for victims, and accountability from the government.
