A fortune teller in Yadgir district has been booked under the Buxo Act after a video allegedly showing him inappropriately touching a seven-year-old girl at his shrine went viral on social media, sparking public outrage, police said on Thursday.
“A notice has been issued to him. We will continue the investigation. The parents and the girl have recorded their statements; they did not find anything wrong with his touch, and they themselves recorded the video. However, the footage shows that the child appears uncomfortable. After counselling, the child welfare committee has recommended registration of an FIR,” said Pruthvik Shankar, Superintendent of Police, Yadgir.
The accused, Mallikarjuna Mutha, 26, also known as Mallikarjun Mutha, runs a Roja Mutt shop in Shahapur taluk of Yadgir district. Police registered the case after the video, recorded on February 19, surfaced online and sparked criticism.
The footage allegedly shows the man sitting inside the shrine in Shahapur with the girl sitting on his lap. He is seen kissing her while her parents stand nearby. The video was later uploaded to Instagram, attracting more attention on social media, officials said.
The girl’s parents, who are from Solapur in Maharashtra, recorded the video and shared it themselves. When questioned by officials, they said they did not consider his actions inappropriate at first.
The video reached the Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR), which took suo motu cognizance and sought a report from the district authorities on the action taken.
On the committee’s directions, officials from the district child protection office visited the mutt and recorded the statements of the girl and her parents. Their findings were submitted to the district administration for review.
A district-level coordination committee headed by the Deputy Commissioner, comprising senior officials including the Superintendent of Police and Zilla Panchayat CEO, examined the footage. The committee then directed the Child Welfare Committee to conduct a detailed investigation.
After providing advice to the child and her family and interacting with them, the Child Welfare Committee concluded that there was prima facie evidence that the accused intentionally touched the girl. Based on her recommendation, the child development project officer filed a formal complaint.
The police subsequently registered a case at Guji police station under Section 75 (2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita Act, 2023, and Section 12 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act, 2012.
The source indicated that the accused has been notified, and investigations are still ongoing. Authorities said video and data collected during the investigation will form part of the evidence in the case.
