Addressing the allegations of sexual harassment against him, Dr Shivamurthy Sharanaru, chief pontiff of the Murugha Mutt, said he had “full trust in the law of the land” and that he derived “strength from his devotees”.
The first information report (FIR), based on the complaint filed by a Mysuru-based NGO Odanadi Seva Samsthe, alleges the pontiff, another seer and two others allegedly sexually abused two minor high school girls residing in the mutt’s hostel. The accused have been booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act 2012 (POCSO) Act and sections of rape. According to police sources, the warden of the hostel was among the accused, reported PTI.
The FIR was first filed at the Nazarabad Police Station. Later, the case was transferred to Chitradurga Rural Police Station, as the mutt fell in its jurisdiction.
Alleging a major conspiracy, he said, “I will provide all assistance to the investigation and have full trust in the law of the land. We must not give credence to rumours and trust the law. This is an unfortunate event and we will come out of it.”
This comes just hours after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former chief minister of Karnataka B S Yediyurappa called the charges “false”. The Chitradurga police have begun investigations and will soon question the pontiff.
YEDIYURAPPA EXTENDS SUPPORT
Yediyurappa is considered the BJP’s most influential Lingayat leader from Karnataka and has a strong clout over the 17% Lingayat vote bank in the state. Lingayat votes can change the course of who forms the government in the state. Yediyurappa has extended his support in favour of the Lingayat seer. On a question from the media whether it is a conspiracy against the seer, Yediyurappa refused to comment. He, however, emphatically stated: “The charges against Swamiji are false. There is no ounce of truth to it, and on completion of the investigation, he will come out clean.”
The former CM’s statement comes a day after Basavaraj Bommai, the sitting BJP chief minister, promised to conduct an impartial investigation into the case and give police the freedom to bring out the truth.
“The allegations are serious and this is an important case. The police have complete freedom, they will investigate and the truth will come out. Making comments or interpreting the case is not good for investigation,” Bommai said on Sunday.
ROLE OF MUTTS IN KARNATAKA POLITICS
Religious mutts in Karnataka play a significant role in the state’s political space. It is seen that when the state is either faced with elections or in a political crisis, the mutts get active, with visits from leaders across political parties.
Took blessings of Dr. Sri Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru swamiji on my visit to Sri Murugha Mutt in Chitradurga. The Swamiji’s contribution towards removal of inequality, poverty and helping the farmers & workers in implementing developmental projects is unparalleled. pic.twitter.com/lv7jf8jQg6
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) March 27, 2018
Karnataka has more than 500 mutts and a little over a dozen of them are considered extremely influential. While the trend of mutts supporting politicians or parties began in the early 1950s, in recent years, several of these religious organisations have openly endorsed candidates, supported political parties or even lobbied for party tickets. Several religious leaders of these mutts represent different communities such as Lingayats, Vokkaligas and Other Backward Castes. They are known for their extensive work to provide food, education and employment to the socially and economically backward people.
HOW THE MUTTS SUPPORT BSY
A classic example of how the mutts can be powerful or enjoy the support of a powerful leader is what happened to Yediyurappa in 2021. As the pressure mounted on the 78-year-old chief minister to step down in line with the party’s ‘unwritten’ rule of promoting all leaders above the age of 75 years to the ‘Margdarshak Mandal’ (guidance panel), Lingayat mutt leaders were unhappy. The heads of all Lingayat mutts in Karnataka unitedly sent out an appeal to the BJP central leadership as well Prime MInister Modi not to replace him.
This is the kind of support no other Karnataka BJP leader enjoys. This is also one of the reasons why we saw Yediyurappa jumping in to provide a ‘clean chit’ to the Murugha seer, who had wholeheartedly supported Yediyurappa’s continuance as the CM. However, the veteran had to bow down to the pressures of the high command and was succeeded by Basavaraj Bommai.
#WATCH | Karnataka: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visits Sri Murugha Math in Chitradurga along with party leaders DK Shivakumar & KC Venugopal pic.twitter.com/nxmwiHeRfI
— ANI (@ANI) August 3, 2022
Senior political analyst Sandeep Shastri talks of how there is no question or doubt on the power or influence that mutts have in Karnataka.
“I think what former CM Yediyurappa and current CM Bommai say reflects the formal positions they need to take. As the head of the government, the CM has to take the stand that the law will take its own course. The former CM, on the other hand, who does not need to be limited by the cautions of power can take an independent stand,” Shastri told News18.
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