The Karnataka police on Thursday, September 1, questioned the warden of the hostel at the Jagadguru Murugarajendra Vidyapeetha math in Karnataka’s Chitradurga in connection with the rape case against chief pontiff Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru. Chitradurga Superintendent of Police Parashuram stated the hostel’s warden Rashmi, who is accused number 2 in the case, was questioned in connection with the allegations of sexual assault against two minor girls. "We have started investigating the accused persons in the case one after the other," he said.
Shivamurthy, the chief pontiff of an influential Lingayat mutt in Karnataka’s Chitradurga, has been accused of sexually assaulting two minors, aged 15 and 16, who were staying at the math hostel. While one has alleged that the seer sexually assaulted her for three and a half years, the other has alleged sexual assault for the past one and a half years.
Meanwhile, a local court in Chitradurga has granted bail to former MLA SK Basavarajan and his wife Soubhagya in connection with the counter complaint — under charges of attempt to rape case and sexual harassment — filed by the women's hostel warden Rashmi in the Chitradurga Rural police station. SK Basavarajan stated after obtaining bail that he is not conspiring against the math.
"I only protected children. After coming to know that the minor girls are in Bengaluru, my wife, son and I went to Bengaluru and tried to bring back the girls to Chitradurga Mutt. But they refused to stay and later they were sent with their family members," he said. "The minor victims were in a bad condition and I gave them shelter. If the minor girls are truthful they will get justice, if they are not, they will be exposed," Basavarajan stated.
On Thursday, Dalit organisations laid siege to the vehicle of the district commissioner of Chitradurga and demanded the arrest of the seer. They said that if the seer is not arrested, they would give a call to their workers from all over the state to come to Chitradurga and stage protests. Shivamurthy has moved a local court in Chitradurga with an anticipatory bail application. The court has adjourned the bail petition of the seer to Friday, September 1.
Read: