According to the sources, preliminary analysis indicates it to be a male, but it needs further confirmation.
Published Aug 05, 2025 | 8:16 AM ⚊ Updated Aug 05, 2025 | 8:30 AM
The police team during the exhumation process in Dharmasthala.
Synopsis: The SIT probing the alleged mass burials in Dharmasthala had yet another breakthrough when it found another set of human remains. Sources said that the spot was not among the sites revealed by the witness earlier.
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing a whistleblower’s claim that hundreds of bodies were buried in Dharmasthala in the Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka made another breakthrough on Monday, 4 August, when it discovered a new set of human remains.
When searching through site 11 among the 15 alleged burial sites pointed out by the whistleblower, they reportedly stumbled upon human remains.
According to sources in the police, human remains were found about 100 m from Spot 11.
A Dalit man, formerly employed as a sanitation worker at the Dharmasthala Manjunatha temple, alleged a 20-year cover-up of murders and sexual assaults.
Sources said that the spot was not among the sites revealed by the witness earlier.
When the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), along with the SIT members, went to the spot, a human skull and several bones were found on the ground itself. They added that no digging was required.
According to the sources, preliminary analysis indicates it to be a male, but it needs further confirmation. The development came just three days after the SIT began its exhumation process.
The complainant alleged that between 1995 and 2014, he was forced under death threats to dispose of hundreds of bodies, many showing signs of sexual violence and brutal murders. He identified 15 possible burial sites.
The first eight locations were identified along the Nethravathi River. Locations 9 to 12 were beside the highway near the river. The 13th was on the road connecting Nethravathi to Aajukuri, and the remaining two, 14 and 15, were in the Kanyadi area near the highway.
The SIT have been conducting exhumation at the sites identified by the whistleblower. Partial human skeletal remains were found at the sixth burial site on 31 July.
On Saturday, another complainant appeared before the SIT and claimed he had witnessed the illegal burial of a teen girl. The individual, identified as Jayant T, appeared before the Beltangady SIT office and submitted a complaint related to a case he had witnessed.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
