K'taka mutt sex scandal: No sign of rape of minor girls, says medical examination report

Bengaluru, Jan 4 (IANS) In a major development the medical examination of the victims in the sensational Lingayat mutt sex scandal case has shown no signs of rape, according to sources.

Lingayat seer Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru of the influential Chitradurga Murugha Mutt has been accused of sexual exploitation of minor girls. He is presently in jail.

The medical examination report is likely to give a new twist to the scandal. The report submitted to the court has categorically stated that there was no penetrative sex with two minor girls who complained against the pontiff, sources said.

The sources said the Chief Medical Officer of the Chitradurga district hospital has conducted the medical tests on the minor victims in the first case lodged against the accused seer on August 27, 2022. The report also stated that the hymens of the minor girls are intact.

Sources informed that one of the minor girls refused to undergo the medical test initially and maintained that she was exploited sexually. Later, when the examination proved otherwise the girl said there was no penetration.

The accused seer has been booked under the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and the Atrocity Act. He was arrested on September 1, 2022 amid high drama and sent to judicial custody.

The courts have rejected his bail pleas and the government has appointed an administrator for the mutt. In another development, the police had arrested a former administrator of the mutt S.K. Basavarajan, his wife Sowbhagya and others for hatching a conspiracy against the accused seer and tutoring the alleged minor victims.