High Court seeks state response on plea for separate FIRs into 74 unnatural deaths in Dharmasthala

Bengaluru:The Karnataka High Court has directed the state government to clarify its stand on a petition seeking the registration of separate FIRs and a detailed investigation by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into 74 alleged unnatural death cases reported in Dharmasthala between 1990 and 2021. The court’s direction came while hearing a public interest litigation filed by Kusumavathi, the mother of Soujanya, a student who was allegedly gang-raped and murdered in Dharmasthala.

The matter was heard on Tuesday by a division bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C.M. Poonacha. The petitioner has urged the court to order the registration of individual FIRs for each of the 74 cases and to ensure a comprehensive and transparent investigation by the SIT.

In her petition, Kusumavathi contended that an unusually high number of unnatural deaths had been reported within the jurisdiction of a single outpost police station in Dharmasthala village. She argued that although the state government had constituted an SIT specifically to investigate these cases, the team had so far registered only one FIR, instead of separate FIRs for each alleged case of murder, missing persons, or suspicious death.

Appearing on behalf of the petitioner, senior advocate S. Balan submitted that the failure to register individual FIRs for all 74 cases was a serious procedural lapse. He told the court that each case required independent investigation, as clubbing them together undermined the seriousness and gravity of the alleged crimes. He further argued that such an approach could affect the rights of victims’ families and weaken the pursuit of justice.

The government advocate, responding to the arguments, stated that the state had not yet received all relevant documents pertaining to the cases. Without examining the complete records, the government could not take an informed position or respond substantively to the allegations raised in the petition, the counsel submitted.

After hearing both sides, the bench observed that the core issue before the court was the non-registration of separate FIRs in connection with the 74 unnatural deaths. The court directed the state government to examine the records available before the court and submit its response accordingly. The bench made it clear that the absence of additional documents could not be cited as a reason to delay stating the government’s position.

The High Court has adjourned the matter for further hearing to February 3. The case continues to draw significant public attention, given the long-standing demands for justice in the Soujanya case and broader concerns over alleged irregularities in the investigation of deaths reported in the Dharmasthala region.