A YouTube channel has approached the Supreme Court, calling the media gag order “unprecedented and profoundly alarming,” against a Bengaluru civil court’s directive that restricts coverage in the Dharmasthala temple burial case involving Harshendra Kumar D.
A petition submitted in the Supreme Court challenging a Bengaluru civil court’s order that prevents the media from disseminating “defamatory” content regarding Harshendra Kumar D, the brother of Dharmasthala Dharmadhikari Veerendra Heggade.
The petition, lodged by the Third Eye YouTube Channel, describes the civil court’s ruling as “unprecedented and profoundly alarming.”
It argues that the order constitutes a direct attack on the freedom This legal action follows the Karnataka government’s establishment of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate allegations that numerous women and girls were allegedly murdered in Dharmasthala, a significant Hindu pilgrimage site in Karnataka.
The petition stems from a request made by Harshendra Kumar D, claiming that media coverage has served the public interest, particularly in light of the SIT’s formation. It highlights that the whistleblower’s original complaint, which led to the FIR, explicitly states that “supervisors” and the Dharmasthala temple administration threatened him with death and coerced him into disposing of numerous bodies.
The petition emphasizes that the plaintiffs, being key figures within the temple administration, are directly implicated in this serious criminal investigation.
It also notes direct accusations against them in a complaint from Sujatha regarding her missing daughter, alleging that both Harshendra Kumar and Dr. D Veerendra Heggade were involved in verbal abuse and actively obstructed her attempts to report her daughter’s disappearance from Dharmasthala.
The petition states,
“Crucially, the media’s reporting on these chilling allegations was not a malicious act, but a vital public service,”
The plea argues that the initial FIR, filed on July 4, did not trigger any immediate state action, and it was the ongoing media coverage that led to Sujatha’s complaint on July 15, where she indicated that the media’s reporting prompted her to come forward.of speech and press (Article 19(1)(a)) as well as the fundamental principles of natural justice and due process (Article 21).
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This, the petition asserts, underscores the crucial role of a free press in revealing hidden truths and giving a voice to those long silenced.
In addition to requesting the removal of the media “gag,” the petition seeks an order that any future defamation cases by Harshendra Kumar D and his brother be heard outside the state due to their considerable influence.
The petition reads,
“Shri Harshendra Kumar serves as executive coordinator of Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala and the secretary of its affiliated educational and social organizations. His elder brother, Dr. D Veerendra Heggade, is the Dharmadhikari of the temple. Due to these roles, they exercise considerable influence regionally and beyond,”
The petition contends that the gag order protects those directly implicated by the mother of a missing girl.
It claims that this order was obtained through a calculated misuse of judicial processes and material misrepresentation by the plaintiffs, which obstructs a significant state criminal investigation into allegations of mass burials and serious crimes linked to the influential Dharmasthala temple.
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The petition also claims that Sri Harshendra Kumar D holds substantial authority within the temple administration and its extensive network of associated institutions.
The Bengaluru civil court has issued an ex parte injunction requiring the deletion or de-indexing of an astounding 8,842 links related to the allegations made by a sanitation worker who claims to have buried multiple bodies in Dharmasthala.
These links encompass coverage by newspapers, television channels, websites, and YouTube channels, as well as various tweets, Facebook posts, and Reddit threads.
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