Karnataka Lingayat mutt sex scandal: Accused seer drugged, abused girls

Chitradurga (Karnataka), Nov 7 (IANS) Rape-accused Lingayat seer Shivamurthy Murthy Murugha Sharanaru allegedly drugged minor girls residing in the Chitradurga Murugha Mutt before violating them, police investigation has revealed.

Currently in judicial custody, the accused seer used to direct other accused to send a minor girl of his choice every day to his private room in the garb of seeking his special blessings.

The abuse was so rampant that the seer had allegedly fixed a routine as to which girl to be sent to him on a particular day.

The children were sent to clean his private room where the accused would give them a chocolate or an apple laced with drugs.

After they lost consciousness, the seer would abuse them. The accused seer kept the victims at his private room throughout the night. Children who would wake up derobed and the seer beside them would get shocked, police sources said.

Then the accused seer would threaten them and instill fear. He also threatened to eliminate their families if the girls revealed about the incident. The victims, already in trauma, would remain tight-lipped, police said.

The seer would ask them to clean his back and lower back while taking a bath and abuse them. The second accused in the case, hostel warden, would monitor the situation and ensure that no one gets suspicious about what is happening around them.

Sharanaru would look for sexual assault victims and offer shelter at his mutt. He also extended financial help to their families. As a result, the families would praise the seer and call him "God".

As the word of mouth spread, parents never thought twice about their children's safety. They would tell the children that they are taken care of by the "God" himself. This made the victims even more hesitant to open up, police said.

Police have got information about several elderly women also getting raped by the accused seer. One of the minor girl victims who was seen as a threat was allegedly killed and called an accident.

The victims were chosen considering their poor background. Orphans or daughters of single parents were preferred. If they refused to go to his room, they were confined, starved and punished severely, police sources claimed.

Most of the details are being mentioned in the two charge-sheets submitted against the accused seer and others to the court.

On August 26, the first POCSO and Atrocity case was lodged against the seer. The second case under similar provisions was filed on October 13. Following high drama the accused seer was arrested on September 1.

Meanwhile, as the accused is refusing to step down as the head of Chitradurga mutt, a delegation had met the Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and discussed the appointment of a new pontiff. Sources within mutt, state that the accused seer is in full control of the mutt and taking decisions.

District Commissioner Divya Prabhu is expected to submit a report on the affairs of the Chitradurga mutt to the government on Monday.