The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Dharmasthala case arrested the whistleblower in the case on August 23.
The whistleblower had appeared before SIT chief Pranab Mohanty on August 22 and recorded his statement. On July 11, the whistleblower had handed over skeletal remains of a body that he had allegedly exhumed to the police. The skeletal remains he presented to the court are believed to not be from Dharmasthala and were probably from a laboratory , according to the SIT sources. “For this reason, he has been booked under the charge of creating false evidence and perjury,” an SIT officer said.
The whistleblower’s claims of being forced to bury multiple bodies of women and children who appeared to have been sexually assaulted had prompted the SIT probe earlier in July. Excavation work by the team has so far led to the recovery of a skeleton and a few human bones at two spots. The SIT source said these recoveries will be investigated, and that soil samples from identified spots have been sent for chemical and forensic testing to check for the potential presence of more human remains in the area.
The arrest comes hours after another complainant in the case, Sujatha Bhat, appeared before the media and made multiple statements that contradicted each other. She claimed that she lied about having a daughter by the name Ananya Bhat and that she was murdered. She instead said that Ananya was the daughter of her friend, and had been murdered.
Over the last few days, both Congress and BJP leaders have rallied behind Veerendra Heggade with protest marches and solidarity speeches. Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivkumar even warned many times that anyone behind the conspiracy to tarnish the temple would be punished.