Daijiworld Media Network- Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Aug 14: The Soujanya Horata Samiti has announced a protest march titled ‘Ujire Chalo’ on August 24, pressing for a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the Soujanya murder case and several other unresolved crimes in Dharmasthala village.
Speaking at a press meet held at the Press Club here on Thursday, committee member K Dinesh Ganiga said the court verdict acquitting accused Santosh Rao in the Soujanya case clearly indicated lapses in the initial investigation. The court had ordered the formation of an acquittal review committee to examine these lapses, but no such probe has been conducted yet. “We have met the SIT chief and reiterated our demand for an impartial and comprehensive investigation,” he said.
Ganiga recalled that in 1973, STM College student Padmalata was raped and murdered, while in 1986, Vedavalli, a teacher at a Dharmasthala-run school, was burnt alive. In 2012, elephant mahout Narayan and his wife Yamuna were killed. “In all these cases, no accused have been identified to date,” he pointed out.
He further stated that between 2002 and 2012, Ujire recorded 452 unnatural deaths, with discrepancies between the Dharmasthala Gram Panchayat death records and the police’s Unnatural Death Reports (UDRs). “These shocking figures underline the urgent need for an SIT probe,” he stressed.
Dismissing allegations that the protesters were defaming the Dharmasthala Kshetra, Ganiga said, “We have never indulged in any propaganda against the Kshetra. Yet, complaints have been filed against us and we are being accused of harming Hinduism. The Constitution gives us the right to protest against wrongdoing. We are not blaming any community or ideology — we are only seeking justice by identifying the real culprits.”
Commenting on BJP legislators’ statements in the Assembly defending the Kshetra, Ganiga remarked, “We welcome their support to the Kshetra, but people are asking why they never spoke about the Soujanya, Vedavalli, and Padmalata cases earlier. Whom are they trying to protect now?”