Karnataka HC grants bail to Murugha math pontiff in POCSO case
Bengaluru, Nov 8: The High Court of Karnataka on Wednesday granted bail to Shivamurthy Sharana, the pontiff of the Chitradurga Murugharajendra Bruhan Math who has been in custody since September last year, facing charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
Justice Srinivas Harish Kumar, who had reserved the judgment on the criminal petition filed by the pontiff, dictated the order on Wednesday afternoon.
The high court has imposed several conditions for the bail in the two POCSO cases against the seer.
Shivamurthy will not be allowed to enter Chitradurga district till the investigation in the cases is completed. He has been granted bail on a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh and two sureties of similar amounts. He has been warned not to tamper with evidence or influence witnesses.
The high court has also said that the seer should not misuse the bail and that if he breaches any of the conditions, it would automatically stand cancelled. The judgment copy is awaited.
The HC on October 13 granted bail to accused number three Paramashivaiah in the first POCSO case against the pontiff and others.
The complaint against the pontiff and four others was filed by Mysuru-based NGO 'Odanadi Seva Samsthe', alleging that the minor students studying in the math's school and staying in its hostel were being sexually abused.
The Nazarabad police in Mysuru had registered a case under POCSO and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Subsequently. the case was transferred to the Chitradurga Rural police station.
The accused were arrested and have been in judicial custody since then. A second case was registered after two more students filed a complaint.
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BJP continues to take jibe at Congress over Priyanka's candidature in Wayanad
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): The BJP in Kerala on Tuesday continued to mock the Congress party's decision to field Priyanka Gandhi in Wayanad, which was vacated by Rahul Gandhi, and said the grand old party may consider her husband Robert Vadra in the upcoming by-poll in Palakkad assembly segment.
BJP state chief K Surendran and senior leader V Muraleedharan criticised the Congress leadership over their decision and alleged that they had cheated the people of Wayanad.
Surendran, who had contested against Rahul Gandhi in the April 26 Lok Sabha polls in the hill constituency, said it is once again proven beyond doubt that the Congress is the only "tool" for the so-called Nehru-Gandhi family to serve their family's interests.
In a post on 'X', he said: "Mr @RahulGandhi claimed that Wayanad is his family. Now he has decided the candidature of his own sister @priyankagandhi to the upcoming by-election in Wayanad. Hope that Mr Rahul will field his brother-in-law @irobertvadra in the Palakkad by-election.
ALSO READ: Rahul Gandhi retains Raebareli seat, vacates Wayanad for Priyanka
"Now the people clearly understand 'Rahul's family sentiments'. It's once again proven beyond doubt that the Congress is the only tool for the so-called Nehru-Gandhi family to serve their family's interest. Pathetic."
Speaking to reporters here, Muraleedharan said the people of the state won't accept the Congress party's attitude that there is no need to show any democratic decorum or justice towards them.
He alleged that Rahul Gandhi had cheated the people of Wayanad by covering up his plans to contest from Rae Bareli until the polls were over in the state.
"I request the people of Wayanad to give a reply to this attitude of the Congress party using their democratic power in the upcoming by-poll," he said.
However, senior Congress leader V D Satheesan rejected the criticism of political opponents against Priyanka Gandhi's arrival in Wayanad and said not just Wayanad but the entire state of Kerala would embrace her to their hearts.
"Like they accepted Rahul Gandhi, people would accept Priyanka also. She is a frontline campaigner who has been staging an intense fight against the fascist and communal forces in the country," he told reporters.
The Congress and the party-led UDF are unitedly welcoming her to Kerala, he added.
Rahul Gandhi had to take a "political decision" to retain Rae Bareli due to the circumstances in the north, he said, adding that several political leaders, including PM Modi, had contested from multiple constituencies.
Priyanka would win the Wayanad segment with a greater voting margin than her brother, he added.
After a leadership meeting in New Delhi, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday said Rahul will keep the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh and vacate the Wayanad seat from where his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will contest.
Rahul had won both from Wayanad and Rae Bareli constituencies and he had to vacate one of the seats within 14 days of the Lok Sabha results, which came out on June 4.
#WATCH | On Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to contest from Wayanad, Kerala Congress leader VD Satheesan says, "Kerala loves members from the Gandhi-Nehru family. We hope that she will get a bigger margin (of votes) than Rahul Gandhi. When he expressed his gratitude to the people of… pic.twitter.com/o1j6Jt82F9
— ANI (@ANI) June 18, 2024
