Bengaluru – The City Civil and Sessions Court has issued an interim injunction restraining Veerendra Heggade, the Dharmasthala district magistrate, from making any defamatory remarks against D. Harshendra Kumar and his brother’s family in connection with the controversial case surrounding unidentified bodies allegedly buried around Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala in Dakshina Kannada.
Harshendra Kumar filed a writ petition seeking legal protection against what he termed as a smear campaign targeting his family. The petition also requested that several media personalities, including Mahesh Shetty Timarodi, Girish Mattannavar, and YouTuber MD Sameer, be barred from spreading unverified news linking his family to the claims.
Acting on the plea, the 11th Additional City Civil and Sessions Court issued an interim order barring the named individuals and outlets from spreading defamatory content until further notice.
The case came into sharp focus after a former sanitation worker from Dharmasthala recently gave a statement claiming that multiple unidentified bodies had been buried around the temple premises, triggering public debate and political responses.
Reacting to the situation from Mysuru, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said an SIT (Special Investigation Team) will not be constituted merely based on a single statement. He emphasized the need to await the findings of the police investigation before taking any concrete steps.
“We will act based on the official police report. There is no question of yielding to pressure,” said the CM.