In a huge relief for Sri Sri Raghaveshwara Bharathi, the pontiff of Ramachandrapura mutt, a court gave a clean chit to him on the rape cases against him. The special court for CBI on Thursday discharged the seer in the rape case.

The trial court saw many allegations and counter allegations, even before the court could begin trial or even the charges framed, reported Bangalore Mirror.

Judge G B Mudigoudar said neither the call records nor DNA samples derived from cloth stains had provided clinching evidence.

Mudigoudar said that the woman's statements during the hearing and the enquiry had not matched and that has diluted the case, reported TNIE.

However, the trial court’s verdict can be challenged in the high court.

The woman, a 50-year-old singer associated with the mutt in Shivamogga district, had accused the seer of raping her 167 times between 2011 and 2014.  He had taken her to places in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi and West Bengal for religious events.

The CID had submitted a chargesheet after the singer’s daughter filed a complaint in August 2014. The Forensic Science Laboratory report had confirmed the rape.

According to The New Indian Express report, Judge G B Mudigoudar said that both the call records and the DNA samples from cloth stains were not good enough evidence against the seer.

“I am satisfied that the truth has finally prevailed. There could have been no better satisfaction. Truth should have won earlier, but it has happened finally. I hope no one else has to undergo what I had to,” the seer said.

​This is an aggregated report from Bangalore Mirror and The New Indian Express​