Activist seeks SIT probe into four hostel deaths in Dharmasthala

Mangaluru (Karnataka), Sep 12 (PTI) Social activist Mahesh Shetty Thimarody has lodged a complaint with the Special Investigation Team (SIT), seeking an inquiry into four unexplained deaths that allegedly occurred in hostels in Dharmasthala between 2006 and 2010, police said on Friday.According to police, the Belthangady-based activist submitted a complaint at the SIT office in Belthangady on Thursday night.

Thimarody alleged that the deaths, reported from Gayatri, Sharavati and Vaishali hostels in Dharmasthala village, were not investigated in accordance with legal procedure.

In his submission, Thimarody claimed that the deceased were declared as 'unknown persons' and their bodies buried through the local Gram Panchayat without post-mortem or registration of First Information Reports (FIRs). Only Unnatural Death Reports (UDRs) were filed in the four cases, he alleged.

The complaint, supported by documents obtained through the Right to Information (RTI) Act, called upon the SIT to register FIRs and initiate a detailed investigation into each case.

The activist has also alleged that the handling of the incidents by authorities at the time was irregular, as it did not adhere to the standard protocol for unnatural or suspicious deaths.

The SIT is examining the complaint. If admitted, police said, FIRs may be registered, witnesses summoned and earlier records scrutinised to establish whether further legal action is warranted. PTI GMS GMS ROH