Murugha Matha head pontiff Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru, accused of raping minors, was arrested on 1 September.
Murugha matha seer Shivamurthy Sharanaru (Supplied)
Rape-accused seer and Chitradurga’s Murugha Matha head pontiff Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru, who has been lodged at the Chitradurga District Prison, is spending his time aloof in a barrack of the prison and not mingling with any other undertrials, allegedly due to security concerns, jail officials said.
The prison staff have deployed a helper — another undertrial — to bring food and water for the seer to his cell from the common areas.
Sources from the jail maintained that the news of the seer allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls has spread inside the prison, and some undertrials and convicts are curious to meet the seer.
However, extra jail wardens have been deployed for the seer’s security inside the prison. Most of the time, the seer is seen meditating inside the cell, jail sources said.
The judicial custody of the seer ended on Wednesday, 14 September, and he was produced before the Second Additional District Court in Chitradurga, which sent him to another 14 days of judicial custody.
The seer’s bail plea hearing, which came up simultaneously, was rejected by the court, which adjourned the hearing to Friday, 16 September, when Public Prosecutor Nagamani would file objections to his bail.
Counsel for the seer, Sandeep Patil requested the court to grant him bail based on his medical condition and also claiming that the investigations into the case had concluded.
However, the advocate for the two minor girls, Srinivas, objected to the seer’s bail stating that the two minor girls feared for their lives if the accused came out on bail, and that they would destroy evidence pertaining to the case.
The court heard the arguments and adjourned the bail plea hearing to Friday.
Meanwhile, the judicial custody of hostel warden Rashmi — a co-accused — was extended until 17 September.
Police sources said that she is lodged at the Shivamogga Central Prison’s women’s wing.
The Lingayat matha’s head pontiff was arrested on 1 September, after being booked under sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, and rape charges under the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The seer, along with four others, have been accused in a case where two minor girls aged 15 and 16 were allegedly sexually abused between 1 January, 2019, and 6 June, 2022.
The girls, with the help of Mysuru-based NGO Odanadi Seva Trust, filed a complaint with the local Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and subsequently with the Mysore City Police, from where the case was transferred to the Chitradurga Rural Police Station.
The police are yet to arrest two of the accused: a junior pontiff, who is said to be a juvenile in conflict with law, and the secretary of the matha, Paramashivaiah. They are absconding, according to the police.
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