RTI Activist Exposes Disappearance of 15 Years’ Death Records in Dharmasthala

Dharmasthala — this name has been resonating across the country for the past few days. Dharmasthala, the place in Karnataka where the ancient Manjunatha temple is located, has now become the epicenter of a major controversy. A few days ago, a sanitation worker claimed that he had buried over a hundred dead bodies of women and young girls there, which has caused a huge sensation. There are allegations that not just women and young girls, but even some men who had come to this place have gone missing. Related to this, a few cases have also been registered at police stations. In some instances, there are accusations that the police even refused to register complaints and instead threatened those who came to file them and sent them back. Now, another sensational issue has come to light — the records of unnatural deaths registered in Dharmasthala over the past 15 years have gone missing. This has become a major cause for concern, especially at a time when reports suggest that the Karnataka government may order a comprehensive investigation by a SIT into the matter.

                                          This disappearance of records was exposed by an activist under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. It is being said that the Belthangady police have removed records of unnatural deaths that occurred between the years 2000 and 2015 in a systematic manner. The key point here is that a large number of suspicious deaths reportedly took place in that area during that period. RTI activist Jayant has lodged a complaint with the SIT on this issue. He claims to have witnessed the illegal burial of a young woman’s body, and that officials were present at the scene. Now, the body needs to be exhumed. Jayant, using the RTI Act over the past few years, had asked the police for photographs and details of the missing persons. In response, the police said that the materials they had — such as wall posters, postmortem reports, notices, photographs — were all destroyed as per administrative orders. Now, the question remains: how will the government respond to this entire issue?