Dharmasthala Mass Burial case: No doubt police are working for accused, says Sujatha Bhat
Mangaluru, July 17: In a powerful statement issued on Wednesday, Sujatha Bhat, the mother of Ananya Bhat, a girl who went missing from Dharmasthala over two decades ago, and her advocate Manjunath N have accused the Dakshina Kannada police of shielding the accused in the Dharmasthala mass burial case. The press release, strongly worded demands immediate formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to take over the probe.
The family’s outrage stems from the latest revelation made by Superintendent of Police Dr Arun K, who stated that the police had received local intelligence suggesting the key witness in the case might abscond after pointing out the locations where bodies are allegedly buried. Reacting sharply, the family questioned the logic of such a claim.
“If he intended to flee, why would he volunteer to guide the police to the burial sites?” asked Advocate Manjunath, expressing disbelief at the SP’s statement. According to the press note, the SP’s remarks indirectly confirm that the bodies are indeed buried in multiple locations around Dharmasthala and that the witness knows exactly where they are. Despite that, the police have delayed exhumation for nearly two weeks since the official complaint was filed on July 3.
The family said this inaction has allowed ample time for those involved to potentially tamper with or remove evidence. “There is no doubt that the Dakshina Kannada police are working for the accused,” the statement alleged. They went on to say that the failure to act is “nothing short of monstrous” and raised fears that the bodies might have already been removed or tampered with during this period of inaction.
Sujatha Bhat, whose daughter Ananya went missing under mysterious circumstances in Dharmasthala 22 years ago, said the ongoing developments have renewed their trauma. She expressed deep distrust in the current investigation team and pleaded with the Karnataka government to remove all existing officers from the probe.
“The Karnataka government is urgently requested to immediately form a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and completely remove the current investigative personnel from the case. I pray that, in these two weeks, we do not face a situation where we have to question how much the current investigating officers have aided the accused,” the statement read.
This latest criticism comes at a time when the Dharmasthala mass burial case is drawing widespread attention across the state. The matter came into public light earlier this month after a former sanitation worker approached the court and confessed that he had buried multiple bodies under coercion many years ago. His statement was recorded under Section 164, and he even handed over skeletal remains to the authorities, which have since been sent for forensic analysis.
Despite this, the complainant’s legal team has repeatedly accused the police of dragging their feet and not taking the next steps quickly, particularly regarding the exhumation of human remains. Meanwhile, the police have maintained that they will proceed only when legally appropriate and with due process.
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Junior Hockey World Cup: IndiGo crisis disrupts travel plans of players' families, fans
Chennai (PTI): For Kate, the dream was simple -- to watch her son Fahy Noah play for the Australian team in the Junior Hockey World Cup here and visit the Taj Mahal.
But her plans, like those of many others, have been upended by the operational crisis that has hit IndiGo, India's largest domestic airline.
"I am here for the first time and India is so kind and welcoming. We were hoping to see the Taj Mahal, but with the IndiGo problems, we are a bit scared now," Kate, who has come from Brisbane, told PTI outside the Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium here.
"One family went on a rest day and got stuck overnight. I think we will have to cancel all our travel plans now, though seeing the Taj Mahal was on my bucket list for long," she said.
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This is the first time that 24 teams are participating in the Junior Hockey World Cup, being held in Chennai and Madurai from November 28 to December 10. For most players and their families, it is their maiden trip to India. Many NRIs have also flown in to support the Indian team.
However, the widespread flight delays and cancellations have thrown schedules into chaos. IndiGo cancelled thousands of flights last week, citing regulatory changes in the pilots' flight duty and regulations norms. This resulted in lakhs of passengers getting stuck at airports across the country.
Laura, who has come from Belgium with her entire family to support her son, said they are now travelling by road.
"We are happy to be here in this beautiful country. We went to Munnar and Madurai, and now we are planning to go to Puducherry and Mahabalipuram by road," she said.
"We had taken IndiGo flights earlier, but some other families who travelled on different days got stuck and somehow managed to come back by train. So we are not flying anywhere in India now. Road travel only and then back to Brussels next week," she said.
For 87-year-old Kenyan hockey legend Avtar Singh Sohal, a four-time Olympian and a lifelong supporter of Indian hockey, the crisis was particularly distressing. He spent 12 gruelling hours at the Chandigarh airport on December 4 before finally reaching Chennai just in time for the quarterfinals.
"Our IndiGo flight was delayed by 12 hours. We were at the airport from 7 am to 7 pm. They kept giving excuses -- the aircraft has not arrived, the pilot is not available. We had no idea what was actually happening," he said.
Accompanying Sohal was 85-year-old Tarlok Singh Mandair, a former treasurer of the English Hockey Association, who had flown in from London.
"It was a horrible experience. They kept changing the timings from 12 noon to 4 pm and we finally took off at 7:20 pm. They gave us sandwiches which were not even good," Mandair recalled.
"Our return flight is also on IndiGo, but now we are exploring other options," he said.
Jujhar Singh Plaha, 86, from London, who was on the same flight, said his excitement has turned into anxiety.
"We were so excited about this trip; hockey is our first love. But this (IndiGo crisis) spoiled our mood. Now we are worried about returning because at our age, we cannot travel long distances by train or road," he said.
Jason, the father of Australian player Roger Lachlan, has had an eventful trip to India so far -- beginning with the rain in Chennai triggered by Cyclone Ditwah.
"We are from Hobart -- home of Ricky Ponting and David Boon. We arrived after a cyclone, which caused heavy rain. Now the sun is out and we are enjoying ourselves," he said with a smile.
Jason, too, has shelved all further travel plans.
"No sightseeing now. We will just eat, swim and head back. I am loving masala dosa, masala tea and curries," he said.
Some fans from Bengaluru, who had booked their flight tickets months in advance, decided not to take a risk. They opted for refunds and drove down to Chennai on Sunday to catch the semifinal.
"With flight uncertainty and trains full, we drove down. We did not want to miss India in the semis," said Vinod Chinnappa, who drove for six hours to come here.
Even officials have not been spared by the flight disruptions.
Digvijay Singh, an official of the Hockey India League franchise, waited eight hours at the Patna airport to catch a flight to Chennai.
"I did not want to miss the India-Belgium quarterfinal, so I waited. I finished all episodes of (web series) Family Man at the lounge," he said.
"I had gone to Patna from Delhi for a meeting earlier in the day and then needed to connect to Chennai," Singh said.
With the World Cup set to wrap up in two days, uncertainty about people's plans to return home looms large.
With prices of alternative flights rising and train seats nearly impossible to find, fans, officials, families and journalists are monitoring travel apps as closely as match updates.
If the situation does not improve soon, returning home could be as challenging as winning matches on the field.
