In a bombshell investigative report, Suvarna News has uncovered a complex and shocking conspiracy behind the Dharmasthala “mass burial” case, alleging that key evidence was fabricated to fuel a narrative of mass burials and a missing person.
Sujatha Bhat’s Claims
The expose centers on Sujatha Bhat, a central figure who claimed her daughter, Ananya Bhat, went missing from Dharmasthala in 2003 while studying MBBS. The channel’s investigation alleges that the photograph presented by Sujatha as her “missing daughter” is, in fact, a stolen image of a deceased woman from Kodagu, manipulated to mislead the public and authorities.
We had earlier reported on Suvarna News’ investigation on the untrustworthy claims made by Sujatha Bhat. Bhat alleged her daughter, Ananya Bhat, was raped and murdered in 2003 and buried at Dharmasthala, triggering a ₹50-lakh SIT excavation that recovered only one skull and a few bones.
Suvarna News found no record of Bhat’s alleged CBI employment in Kolkata, no admission of “Ananya” in Kasturba Medical College, and no documentary proof of the daughter’s existence, including school or identity records. Neighbours in Shivamogga recalled Bhat living with Prabhakar Baliga and having no children. Police have also questioned her 22-year delay in filing a complaint and lack of corroboration. It was claimed that Bhat had gone missing after making the allegations, but she released a video denying she was missing. In the video however, she avoided addressing these contradictions, leaving the SIT frustrated with her non-cooperation.
In the ongoing investigation by Suvarna News, a lot more inconsistencies and possibly fraud have been discovered.
The Fabricated Photograph
According to Suvarna News report, their investigation began to unravel when inconsistencies emerged in Sujatha Bhat’s story. Under pressure to produce evidence, the group behind the narrative, which allegedly includes YouTuber Sameer MD, held a secret meeting.
The plan, as reported by the channel, was to find a photograph of a woman who looked Hindu, had died long ago, and had no immediate family alive to identify her, ensuring it would be untraceable by reverse image search tools like Google Lens.
Suvarna News traced Sujatha Bhat’s recent history to a live-in relationship with a Bengaluru-based ex-BL employee named Ranga Prasad in Kengeri. The investigation revealed that Ranga Prasad’s daughter-in-law, Vasanthi, a nurse from Kodagu, had died in 2007 under unnatural circumstances. Her husband, Shrivatsa, passed away in 2015. The couple had reportedly parted ways years earlier due to a troubled marriage.
The channel alleged that Sujatha Bhat stole an old college-day photograph of Vasanthi from Ranga Prasad’s home. In the clandestine meeting, which Sameer MD reportedly attended, the decision was made to use this photo. To further the deception, a blue bindi (vermillion mark) was crudely drawn on the photograph to make Vasanthi appear more recognizably Hindu before it was released to the public as Ananya Bhat.
Sujatha Bhat’s Contradictory Narratives
Following the expose, Sujatha Bhat gave a series of interviews that, according to the report, further exposed the inconsistencies in her story. During one such interview on Public TV, she made several claims that contradict previous statements and known facts:
Date of Birth: When asked, she stated Ananya was born in 1983 after a long pause, which conflicts with her earlier claim of marrying Anil Bhat in 1988.
The Photograph: She insisted the photo was of Ananya, retrieved after a long search following a house fire, and denied any knowledge of Vasanthi, despite allegedly having a relationship with Vasanthi’s father-in-law.
An Elaborate Backstory: Bhat spun a new tale, claiming her family had thrown her infant daughter into a river because they disapproved of her marriage. She said a couple named Arvind and Vimala from Mangalore rescued and raised the child until she was reunited with her years later.
Contradictions on Employment and Residence: Her account of working for the CBI and her daughter’s upbringing in Kolkata conflicted with her previous international media interviews and earlier local news reports from 2003, where she was quoted as saying she had no children.
New Twists And Turns
The Dharmasthala “mass burial” controversy took a new turn, with BJP leaders accusing Congress MP and former IAS officer Sasikanth Senthil of being the mastermind behind what they call a conspiracy to defame the temple. Udupi MLA Yashpal Suvarna and Independent MLA G. Janardhan Reddy alleged that Senthil, who once served as Mangaluru DC, orchestrated the drama through the so-called “masked man” who handed a skull to police. They questioned whether the SIT would investigate him given his political clout and closeness to the CM.
Senthil, who resigned from the IAS in 2019 citing opposition to Article 370 abrogation and CAA, joined Congress in 2020, later becoming a key strategist in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Elected from Tiruvallur in 2024, he faces past allegations of corruption, manipulation of sand mining permits, and favoritism toward leftist and Islamist groups during his tenure as DC, raising demands for a deeper probe.
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