CPI MP seeks NIA probe into Dharmasthala ‘crimes’

Rajya Sabha member P. Sandosh Kumar of the Communist Party of India (CPI) on Saturday appealed to the Union Home Minister Amit Shah to order a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into the alleged burials of bodies which took place in Dharmasthala village in Karnataka over a decade ago.

In a letter to Mr. Shah, he said, “... Recent developments have brought to the fore a grim reality that cannot be ignored. What appeared over the years as isolated incidents now unmistakably point to a disturbing and systematic pattern of crimes — primarily targeting women, often silenced through coercion, and concealed with frightening impunity...”

The MP said that a series of “unsolved crimes” over several decades, primarily targeting women, reveal chilling signs of systematic violence, concealment, and administrative silence in a town that is sacred to millions across India.

The letter cited a series of alleged crimes since 1979, especially involving young women, that remained uninvestigated and are part of “a larger, deeply troubling pattern”.

“... In 1979, a schoolteacher named Vedavalli was burnt alive in her bathroom after legally winning a promotion that some influential forces allegedly opposed. In 1986, Padmalatha, a young pre-university student and daughter of a local Communist leader, was kidnapped and later found naked and lifeless in the Netravati river — seemingly punished for her father’s political stand. In 2004, medical student Ananya Bhat went missing during a visit to Dharmasthala; her mother, a CBI employee who tried to investigate, was physically attacked and fell into a coma. No FIR was ever filed. In 2012, two siblings — Narayan and Yamuna — were brutally murdered in their home, just metres away from the KSRTC bus stand. They had reportedly resisted pressure to vacate their land. Their house was razed soon after and replaced by a commercial building. That same year, 17-year-old Sowjanya, a PU student, was abducted, raped, and murdered. A mentally ill man was quickly framed and jailed, only to be acquitted years later. Multiple witnesses died mysteriously during the course of the case...” the letter said.

“...These are not isolated aberrations. Taken together, they reveal signs of an organised criminal enterprise — one that has flourished under administrative silence,” wrote Mr. Kumar. He also flagged the alleged pattern of intimidation, harassment, and suppression faced by activists, RTI petitioners, journalists, and families who sought justice.

The MP said that despite widespread protests and appeals, the State government has failed to establish a credible Special Investigation Team (SIT), and the so-called ‘acquittal review committee’ was never properly constituted. The MP urged Mr. Shah to immediately transfer the matter to the NIA for a fair and credible investigation.

“Let me emphasise that this appeal is made in the firm belief that the spiritual sanctity of Dharmasthala must be protected — not just in ritual or appearance, but in truth, justice, and transparency,” the MP wrote. Stressing that a town revered by millions cannot remain clouded by fear, suspicion, and buried truths, he added.