Karnataka HC declines to quash rape charges against Murugha Mutt seer

The Karnataka High Court on Monday declined to quash rape charges against Shivamurthy Sharanaru, the pontiff of the Jagadguru Murugarajendra Vidyapeetha Mutt accused of sexually abusing two minor girls.

A single-judge bench of Justice M Nagaprasanna partially allowed the contentions of the seer, ordering that charges against him be reframed as several of the laws had not been properly applied against him. These included charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, Religious Institutions (Prevention of Misuse) Act, Juvenile Justice Act, and Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The bench also disagreed with the actions of the special court in framing the charges, observing that they should have been more than a “post office” regarding whatever was presented by the prosecution.

Sharanaru had previously obtained bail in 2023 with the high court imposing a host of conditions, including the seer executing two bonds of a sum of Rs 2 lakh, refraining from witness tampering, and staying out of Chitradurga district until the conclusion of the trial.