Bengaluru, Sep 27 (IANS) Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar has confirmed that Chinnaiah, known as the masked man, has taken a skull to Delhi before lodging complaints regarding the mass grave case.

Speaking to the media at his residence in Sadashivanagar on Saturday, Shivakumar responded to various questions.

“Our government’s only intention is to reveal the facts of the Dharmasthala case to the public,” Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar has reiterated while responding to a statement by Dharmadhikari of Dharmasthala Veerendra Heggade thanking the Congress-led government for a transparent investigation.

Further answering a question about Veerendra Heggade’s statement that the formation of the SIT (Special Investigation Team) has cleared the “blot” on him, Shivakumar said, “Let the investigation report come out first. I’ll speak after that. I’ve seen Veerendra Heggade’s statement in the media. There’s no point in commenting on it before the report is released.”

“Politicians may say whatever they want. But I represent the government and cannot speak like others. Once the report is submitted, either the Chief Minister or the Home Minister will issue an official statement. I will speak after that,” he clarified.

When asked whether the government would take action against those who are allegedly trying to mislead the public despite the Supreme Court dismissing the PIL, he replied, “This is not the time to discuss that. A petition was filed in the Supreme Court, and it was dismissed.”

The court directed the petitioners to approach local authorities to pursue their demand to conduct an investigation and sent them back, Shivakumar maintained.

“No one is speaking about the Supreme Court’s directives. They went all the way to Delhi with the skull. But let the investigation team officially submit the report to us,” Shivakumar maintained.

Earlier, Shivakumar stirred a controversy, saying that there is a conspiracy to defame the Hindu pilgrimage centre Dharmasthala.

The statement caused embarrassment to the Congress-led government, and the BJP slammed the state government.

T. Jayanth, one of the activists fighting against temple authorities, had stated that along with complainant Chinnaiah and others, they had gone to Delhi in a car with a skull, to seek guidance in the case.

Heggade, BJP Rajya Sabha member, stated on Friday that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the mass grave case is bringing out the truth, and he expressed his gratitude to the Congress-led government in the state.

BJP State President B. Y. Vijayendra had said, “The Congress-led government is actively aiding a systematic conspiracy aimed at discrediting and diminishing the reputation of the revered Hindu religious centre, Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala.”

–IANS

mka/svn