'Burnt And Buried Bodies Of Rape Victims': Former Sanitation Worker's Shocking Admission

Last Updated:July 06, 2025, 08:52 IST

The man, who worked as a former sanitation employee with the Dharmasthala temple administration, requested the authorities to keep his identity secret. 

Representative Image of Karnataka Police | ANI

A man from Dakshina Kannada district approached local police, claiming that he was forced to burn and bury the bodies of several women, including schoolgirls, who were raped and murdered in Dharmasthala and nearby areas between 1998 and 2014.

The man, who worked as a former sanitation employee with the Dharmasthala temple administration, requested the authorities to keep his identity secret.

He said that he decided to come forward after nearly a decade, driven by remorse and a desire to seek justice for the victims of rape and murder.

The police said that, after taking the necessary permissions from the court, a case has been registered at the Dharmasthala police station based on the complaint on July 3 under Section 211(a) (failing to provide required information in the manner and time prescribed by law) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

The whistleblower also requested protection for himself and his family. Advocates Ojaswi Gowda and Sachin Deshpande, who are representing him, shared the contents of his complaint.

He stated that he submitted photographs to the police showing the remains of bodies he had recently exhumed, which he claims to have buried years ago.

“I request the police to exhume the remains of bodies buried by me. About 11 years ago, I left Dharmasthala along with my family and hid ourselves and lived in a neighbouring state. We are haunted daily that we will also be killed. I was born into a lower caste family and I worked as a sanitation worker from 1995 to December 2014 under the Dharmasthala temple. I used to take up cleaning work in and around the Nethravathi river," he said, as quoted by TNIE.

In his complaint, he added that he initially came across several bodies and assumed they were victims of suicide or accidental drowning.

Most of the bodies were of women, many of whom were unclothed, and some showed signs of sexual assault, strangulation, and other injuries, he claimed.

In 1998, according to the complaint, his supervisor allegedly ordered him to dispose of the bodies in secret. When he refused and threatened to report the matter to the police, he was reportedly assaulted.

The police said that a further probe into the case is underway.

Location :

Karnataka, India, India

First Published:

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