The Aryavarth Express
Agency (Bengaluru): The High Court of Karnataka, in a recent ruling on Monday, declined to dismiss the accusations of sexual misconduct against Dr. Shivamurthy Muruga Sharanaru, the pontiff of Murugha Mutt in Chitradurga. The allegations stem from the reported sexual abuse of two minor girls residing in the hostels overseen by the Mutt. Despite this, the court overturned the trial court’s decision to frame charges against the accused, instructing a revision of charges after eliminating specific allegations deemed inappropriate.
Justice M Nagaprasanna, presiding over the case as a single-judge bench, partially granted the seer’s plea for relief. The arrest of the pontiff was pursuant to the POCSO Act, following the victims’ plea for assistance from the Odanadi Seva Samsthe, a non-governmental organization based in Mysuru.
The court criticized the trial court’s passive acceptance of the prosecution’s proposed charges, emphasizing that charges pertaining to Section 3(f) and Section 7 of the Religious Institutions (Prevention of Misuse) Act were not applicable to the Mutt as determined by a similar bench. Furthermore, allegations under the Atrocities Act and Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, were found to be inapplicable, specifically those against the second accused. The accusation of gang rape against the pontiff was dismissed for lacking substance, focusing instead on individual acts of rape.
Nevertheless, charges under section 376 (2)(n) and Sections 4 and 6 of the POCSO Act were maintained. The court instructed that the trial court should revise the charges, considering the remarks made in the ruling, to ensure an unbiased reevaluation of the case.
Additionally, the court overturned the trial court’s refusal to provide the accused with certain documents, ruling that the petitioner is entitled to any documents requested that are not already included in the charge sheet. Previously, the High Court had permitted bail for the pontiff, contingent upon him posting two bonds of Rs.2,00,000 each, with a caution that bail is conditional and any misuse of freedom could lead to its revocation.
