K.R. Hospital doctors tipped off Police about accused Doddaiah who was feigning illness

Chamarajanagar / Mysuru:  The Ramapura Police in Chamarajanagar district have lodged a fresh FIR in the Hanur Taluk Sulwadi Maramma Temple prasadam poisoning case and are likely to produce the accused to a Court in Kollegal at 3 pm today. Chamarajanagar SP Dharmendra Kumar Meena is addressing a press conference in this regard today at 6 pm.

The Police, who had registered an FIR and had named seven accused soon after the incident, prepared a fresh FIR today as they have got new clues and fresh leads into the poisoning incident where 15 persons lost their lives.

FOUR ACCUSED

While senior Police officers, including IGP (Southern Range) K.V. Sharath Chandra and SP Dharmendra Kumar Meena are supervising the investigations and are in an unknown destination interrogating the accused, Police sources told Star of Mysore that Immadi Mahadevaswamy, the junior Seer of Salur Mutt in Male Mahadeshwara Hills, who is also the President of the Maramma Temple Trust, has been named Accused No.1 in the fresh FIR.

Ambika, the Temple Secretary, who has reportedly told the Police that she had poured Organophosphorus (pesticide) into the dish in which the prasadam was being prepared, has been named Accused No.2. She has reportedly confessed before the Police that she had acted at   the behest of Immadi Mahadevaswamy.

Madesha, the Temple Manager and the husband of Ambika, has been named as Accused No.3 and Doddaiah, Assistant Cook of the Temple, has been named as Accused No.4.

Trust Member Chinnappi, who was named in the first FIR as accused, has agreed to be a Government approver along with Agricultural Officer Siddappa Swamy and Temple Cook Puttaswamy, who are witnesses in the case.

SPOT MAHAZAR

While Immadi Mahadevaswamy has been taken to an undisclosed location for interrogation, the Police team led by Kollegal Dy.SP Puttamadaiah took accused Doddaiah, Ambika and Madesha to the Maramma Temple for spot Mahazar this morning.  They, along with other accused, will be produced before a Court in Kollegal at 3 pm.

Police sources said that before producing them before the judge, the accused will be taken to the Kollegal hospital for medical check-up and Dr. Ravishankar has been given the authority to certify the health of the accused.

HOW THE CASE WAS CRACKED

The Police were able to crack the case by zeroing in on Doddaiah who was admitted to the K.R. Hospital.

Sources said that Doddaiah availed treatment at the hospital for four days and on Sunday (Dec. 16), doctors treating him told the Police that Doddaiah did not have traces of poison in his body and he was feigning illness.

Doctors told the Police that as there was a heavy influx of patients into the Hospital, Doddaiah was treated along with all other patients. Doctors said that initially, they did not suspect Doddaiah when he gave conflicting statements about the poisoning incident. But when his blood reports were examined on Sunday, the doctors found no traces of pesticides in his blood, sources said.

BLOOD TEST GAVE CLUE

Doddaiah’s blood samples testing negative for pesticide increased suspicion and the doctors alerted the Police. To confirm the blood reports, the doctors even sent them for second round of tests where it was confirmed that Doddaiah was healthy and he had just feigned illness.

Doctors told the Police that Doddaiah behaved normally but acted as if he was suffering from great pain when politicians, Ministers and media visited the Hospital. Soon, Doddaiah was discharged on the same day by the Police team that came in mufti and the Police grilled him on the incident and Doddaiah spilt the beans, Police sources said. Based on Doddaiah’s statements, the other accused were interrogated to throw more light on the case, sources added.

PATIENTS RECOVERING

Meanwhile, speaking to SOM, Medical Superintendent of K.R. Hospital Dr. Srinivas said that the all the 24 patients who had been admitted to the hospital were recovering.

Most of them will be discharged this evening or in the next two days. However, the condition of one patient continues to be critical, he said.

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