In a big development in the alleged Dharmasthala mass burial case, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) has arrested the whistleblower, a former sanitation worker for perjury (the crime of telling lies in court when you have promised to tell the truth) on Saturday (August 23, 2025). The former sanitation worker was arrested after a prolonged questioning on Friday (August 22, 2025). After being presented before the jurisdictional magistrate, the court remanded the whistleblower in SIT custody till September 3. He had appeared before SIT chief Pranab Mohanty on August 22 and recorded his statement.
On July 11, the whistleblower had handed over skeletal remains of a body that he had allegedly exhumed to the police. It was said by the SIT sources that the skeletal remains he presented to the court are believed to not be from Dharmasthala. The SIT sources said that they were probably from a laboratory. “For this reason, he has been booked under the charge of creating false evidence and perjury,” an SIT officer said.
What is the alleged Dharmasthala mass burial case?
The alleged Dharmasthala mass burial had been dominating the news headlines from all quarters for a long time now. According to the allegations made by a former sanitation worker, he was forced to cremate the bodies of several women and minors between 1998 and 2014. The former sanitation worker has claimed that many of these bodies showed clear signs of sexual assault. As per an India Today report, the sanitation worker also filed a complaint on July 3 and sought anonymity citing threats to his life.
The man also said that he has witnessed some of the killings and was forced to bury or burn the bodies under the death threat.
Which IPS officer resigned from the Special Investigation Team probing the alleged Dharmasthala mass burial case?
Apart from the disclosures made by the sanitation worker, the resignation of an IPS officer Soumyalatha, also dominated the news headlines. IPS officer Soumyalatha, who was part of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to probe the alleged mass burials and sexual assaults in Karnataka’s Dharmasthala, had resigned from the team.
