The Karnataka High Court recently granted conditional bail to Lingayat seer Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru, who had been arrested in September 2022. He was accused of sexually assaulting minor girls residing in a hostel operated by the Muruga mutt, where he holds the position of chief pontiff. The bail was granted following protests sparked by the rape allegations made by two underage girls against him.

The seer, Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru, has been granted bail after nearly a year of incarceration. Nevertheless, he will remain in custody and can only be released if bail is approved for him in a separate case.

Two underage girls lodged a complaint at the Nazarabad police station in Mysuru, accusing Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru and others of sexual harassment at the Lingayat mutt in Chitradurga, Karnataka.

As per the complaint the two girls aged 15 and 16 were sexually exploited by the Seer over a period of 3 and a half years while they were studying at the school run by the mutt.

One of the girls told the police that there was “repeated sexual penetration”. However she refused to agree to get a medical examination done by the doctors. Following the allegations the Seer was charged with Rape and Sexual Harrasment.

Later in September 2022 the girl asserted that there was no sexual penetration to the government doctors.

In October 2023, an additional FIR against Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru was registered by a mother alleging that her minor daughter was sexually harassed by him.