Dharmasthala case: SIT files charge sheet, six accused named
Mangaluru (Karnataka) (PTI): The SIT investigating the allegations of multiple murders, rapes and burials in the temple town of Dharmasthala, has submitted the charge sheet before a court in Dakshina Kannada district, police sources said.
The Special Investigation Team submitted the 3,900-page report to the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court at Beltangady on Thursday, under Section 215 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), naming six persons as accused, they said.
Mahesh Shetty Timarodi, Girish Mattannavar, T Jayanth, Vittal Gowda -- activists who had earlier backed the registration of the FIR in the case -- also Sujatha Bhat and one more person (reportedly complainant Chinnaiah), have been named as the accused.
A controversy erupted after a man, identified as C N Chinnaiah and arrested on charges of perjury, claimed burying many bodies, including those of women with signs of sexual assault, in Dharmasthala over a period of two decades, with the implications pointing towards the administrators of the local temple.
The SIT, formed by the state government, has conducted excavations at multiple locations identified by the complainant in the forested areas along the banks of the Netravathi River in Dharmasthala, where some skeletal remains were found at two sites.
Later, the SIT recently again recovered some skeletal remains during a search operation in the Banglegudde forest area near the Nethravathi bathing ghat.
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Guv Gehlot clears bill paving way for Panchayat elections through ballots
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot has given his assent to the Karnataka Gram Swaraj and Panchayat Raj (Amendment) Act that will pave the way for holding the Panchayat elections through ballots instead of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
Following the assent, the Act was notified in the state gazette on Wednesday.
The bill was passed by both houses of the Karnataka legislature in March during the budget session, amid protests by the opposition BJP.
As per the law, the principle of secrecy of the ballot is a cornerstone of free and fair elections, as recognised by the judiciary, which emphasised that the secrecy of the ballot protects voters from coercion, intimidation, and undue influence, thereby safeguarding the sanctity of the democratic process in several judgments of the Supreme Court.
Some concerns have been raised regarding the functioning of EVMs, necessitating a return to the robust secret ballot paper system to restore public trust, according to the Act.
Justifying its decision, the Karnataka government said there is “a growing consensus on the need to strengthen electoral mechanisms that prioritise anonymity and transparency”.
