SIT summons activists in Dharmasthala mass burial probe amid escalating scrutiny
Mangaluru (PTI): The SIT probing allegations of multiple burials at Dharmasthala in Karnataka has issued summons to three activists--Mahesh Shetty Thimarody, T Jayanth, and Girish Mattannavar--requiring their appearance on Monday.
Failure to comply will result in arrest warrants, as the probe deepens into potential perjury and evidence tampering, police sources said.
The SIT investigation has come to a decisive stage and nearing completion, according to a senior official of the SIT.
The case originated in August 2025 when Chinnaiah, a former sanitation worker at the temple from 1995 to 2014, filed a complaint alleging the secret burial of over 200 unidentified bodies on temple premises between 2002 and 2014.
He claimed the remains included victims of accidents, murders, and suspicious deaths, buried without autopsies or police reports to conceal irregularities.
Chinnaiah presented a human skull as evidence, which he said was recovered from the site, sparking widespread outrage among the temple's millions of annual devotees and prompting the state government to form an SIT under Pronab Mohanty.
Investigations revealed Chinnaiah's close ties to the three activists, all linked to the ongoing Justice for Sowjanya campaign--a decade-long push for resolution in the 2012 rape and murder of teenager Sowjanya in Udupi.
Mahesh Shetty Thimarody, a prominent figure in the campaign, provided shelter to Chinnaiah at his Ujire residence days before the complaint. SIT searches there on August 26 yielded 44 items, including laptops with 25 videos of Chinnaiah's media interactions and seized phones containing 21 additional recordings.
Thimarody, externed from Raichur district in September for unrelated charges including assault on a journalist, alongside Mattannavar, faces questions on his role in amplifying the allegations.
T Jayanth, a Bengaluru-based activist and Thimarody associate, hosted Chinnaiah for three days post-arrest and escorted him to Delhi with the skull, accompanied by perjury-accused Sujatha Bhatt and Mattannavar.
Jayanth later admitted to the SIT that he acted on Mattannavar's instructions, claiming no intent to conspire but readiness to face charges.
He also filed a separate complaint alleging improper burial of a 15-year-old girl's body near Dharmasthala in 2002-2003.
Girish Mattannavar, a former sub-inspector and Sowjanya campaign coordinator, introduced Chinnaiah to Jayanth in April 2025 and directed logistics for transporting the skull.
Questioned multiple times in September, Mattannavar has been accused in complaints of orchestrating a network to defame temple head D Veerendra Heggade.
Forensic analysis traced the skull to a medical research centre, undermining its evidentiary value and fuelling perjury inquiries.
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Prasidh, Kuldeep limit South Africa to 270 after De Kock's hundred
Visakhapatnam (PTI): India fought back gallantly through Prasidh Krishna and Kuldeep Yadav after Quinton de Kock struck his 23rd hundred, keeping South Africa to a manageable 270 in the third and series-deciding final ODI, here Saturday.
India won the toss after judging the spin of the coin incorrectly 20 times in a row. They had little hesitation in inserting the Proteas into bat, a clear indication of dew factor dominating the thought.
After Arshdeep Singh sent back Ryan Rickelton early, De Kock (106, 89b, 8x4, 6x4) struck his seventh century against India and put on 113 runs off 124 balls with skipper Temba Bavuma (48, 67b) as the visitors moved to a healthy position.
De Kock was severe on Prasidh (4/66), who erred on length continuously in his first spell (2-0-27-0). The left-hander biffed the pacer for 6, 6, 4 in his second over to milk 18 runs.
The 32-year-old quickly pounced on anything that was short, and pacers Prasidh and Harshit offered him plenty of feed on his pet areas.
Bavuma was more sedate, and made runs through those typical dabs and jabs, occasionally unfurling a drive of elan.
De Kock moved to fifty in 42 balls, and never let the tempo down reaching his hundred in 79 balls.
India found temporary relief when Ravindra Jadeja induced a false slash from Bavuma to get caught by Virat Kohli at point.
The tourists got another move on through a 54-run partnership between De Kock and Matthew Breetzkle for the third wicket, and at 168 for two in 28 overs they were in a good position to press on.
But Breetzke's punishment of part-time spinner Tilak Varma forced a rethink in the Indian camp, as skipper KL Rahul brought back Prasidh for a second spell.
What a masterstroke it turned out to be! The Karnataka man broke the back of South Africa’s top and middle order in an exceptional second spell (4-0-11-3).
Breetzke was the first man to go, trapped plumb in front with a straight one and four balls later Aiden Markram uppishly chipped a fuller delivery to Kohli at short covers.
Prasidh soon castled De Kock, whose ugly cross-batted swipe failed to connect a full length delivery from the pacer.
All of a sudden, SA found themselves at a shaky 199 for five, losing three wickets in the space of three overs.
Once Prasidh was done away with the top and middle-order, left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep (4/41) took over and mopped up the tail as SA fell short of even a par total on this track.
