Not involved in conspiracy against seer, says Murugha Math's Administrative Officer
Chitradurga, Sep 1: Accused by some of his role in two high school girls levelling sexual abuse charges against Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru of Murugha Math, the seminary's administrative officer S K Basavarajan on Thursday said he was not involved in any conspiracy against the pontiff and he has done his duty by trying to protect the children.
Breaking his silence for the first time, the former MLA, who along with his wife were accused of conspiring against the seer by Math officials, said every thing will be known to everyone in the days to come, and if the children were right, they will get justice.
Basavarajan and his wife were today granted bail by the the first additional district and sessions judge's court here in a case of sexual harassment and kidnapping that were registered against them on a complaint by a woman, who is said to be a staff at the Math.
He said the case against him and his wife was 'completely false' and a "counter" to cases filed against the seer and four others, as the pontiff's followers in the Math believe in his involvement and conspiracy behind the girls' charges against the seer.
"I have no role in this case, there is no conspiracy on my part, I'm being intentionally accused. As the case is before the Court, I don't want to comment more," Basavarajan said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said every thing will be known to everyone in the days to come.
He was responding to a query as to whether the charges against the seer were true and were there any irregular things happening in the math.
"I have given protection to those children, I have done my duty to an extent possible. When those children were at a police station in Bengaluru, my wife, son and I had gone there in the night and brought them back by giving in writing, and handed them over to their parents...if the children are true they will get justice, if not they will not," he added.
According to sources, the girls are said to have gone to Bengaluru in search of help and to narrate their ordeal, before going to Mysuru.
The Mysuru city police had on Saturday filed an FIR against the seer under the POCSO Act and certain sections of the Indian Penal Code for the alleged sexual abuse.
The FIR was registered against a total of five people, including the warden of the monastery's hostel, based on the complaint by an officer of the District Child Protection Unit.
Two girls had approached a non-governmental organisation in Mysuru and narrated the alleged abuse, following which it approached the authorities and the case was registered by the police.
The case was subsequently shifted to Chitradurga, as it was the place of occurrence of the alleged crime.
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After fake ID crackdown, IRCTC daily new accounts down to 5000 from one lakh: Railways
New Delhi (PTI): With a new, stringent system to establish user identity, the number of new user IDs being added daily on the IRCTC website has declined to about 5,000 from nearly one lakh, officials said on Saturday.
Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw noted that the crackdown by Indian Railways on train ticket booking through fake identities is yielding positive results, according to a press note.
Before the latest reforms, this number had touched nearly one lakh new user IDs per day, it said.
"Following the introduction of a stringent system to establish user identity and detect fake IDs, about 5,000 new user IDs are now being added daily on the IRCTC website," the note said.
The officials stated that these steps have already helped Indian Railways deactivate 3.03 crore fake accounts.
"Another 2.7 crore user IDs have either been temporarily suspended or identified for suspension based on the suspicious activities they are indulging in," they said.
The Union minister directed officials to ensure that the ticketing system is reformed to a level where all travellers are able to book tickets easily through a real and genuine user ID, the press note added.
Additionally, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has directed officials to provide local cuisine of the region in Vande Bharat trains.
Introducing local cuisine that reflects the culture and tastes of the regions being traversed will significantly enhance the passenger experience, officials said.
This facility will be expanded to all the trains progressively in future, they added.
