Chennai, January 20
Tension prevailed in the temple town of Kancheepuram, 70 km from here, as the manager of Uttaranchal Mutt, Srinivas Acharya, was found murdered inside the Mutt premises early morning today.
Even as the murder of Sankararaman, manger, Varadaraja Perumal temple, continues to hog headlines following the arrest of the two Sankara Mutt seers in connection with the crime, the murder of another manager of a Mutt has sent shock waves across the town.
The Uttaranchal Mutt is visited main by pilgrims from North India on their way to Rameswaram in southern Tamil Nadu. They are provided with boarding and lodging facilities there.
The body of the 40-year-old Srinivas Acharya, who was in charge of the 150-year-old Mutt located just behind the Varadaraja Perumal temple, bore deep wounds made by a sharp instrument. It was found lying in a pool of blood this morning by a milkman.
Another Mutt official identified his body in presence of the police.
Srinivas Acharya, who had come to the Mutt around 15 years ago, was to leave for his native place in Jehanabad in Bihar to attend the funeral rites of his mother. The police said Ramanji, an official from Mutt’s Sriperambadur branch, about 20 km from here, had stayed overnight at the Mutt to take charge from Srinivas. Ramanji, who was sleeping in a different room than Srinivas, after being alerted by the milkman, informed the police.
Kancheepuram Superintendent of Police, Mr Prem Kumar, visited the scene of the crime along with a sniffer dog which failed to lead the police to the murderer.
The police suspected land deals to be the motive behind the murder as the Mutt had large tracts of land and which had been encroached upon. Srinivas Acharya had lodged complaints in this regard to the police.
Meanwhile, three special police teams have been formed to search for the killers of Srinivas, said Mr Prem Kumar. He added that the assailants had been identified and would be arrested in a couple of days.
The three teams, comprising members who had handled the Sankararman murder case involving the Kanchi Shankaracharyas, were pursuing various leads, he said.
The teams would be led by Koyambedu Inspector Srinivasan, Kancheepuram Inspector Mohanvelu and Sriperumbudur Inspector Ravikumar.
Meanwhile, the Kanchi Shankaracharya and his junior pontiff, both main accused in the Sankararaman murder case, today received a jolt as one of the key accused recorded his confessional statement before a magistrate and became an approver.
Ravi Subramanian, a civil contractor, today gave an in-camera statement under Section 164 CrPC before Judge Rangarajan at the Chengapattu court in Kancheepuram district. He said he wanted to be an approver in the murder case. The court granted him the status of an approver.
In his statement Subramanian narrated the sequence of events which led to the daylight murder of Vardaraja Perumal temple manager, Sankararaman, on September 3 last year and the involvement of the Shankaracharya, the junior seer and many others
accused in the case. He admitted having given huge amounts of money to Kathiravan, who allegedly led the hired assassins and hacked Sankararaman inside his office and stated that the money was given to him by the Shankaracharya himself.
Subramanian’s statement as an approver assumed significance as the special investigating team of the Tamil Nadu police was expected to file the chargesheet tomorrow against the two seers and 24 others accused in the murder case.
Subramanian also spoke about many other “immoral activities” which were going on inside the centuries-old Kanchi Shankara Mutt about which Sankararaman had written threatening letters to the Hindu pontiff and thereby earned his wrath.
In his statement he also mentioned, “After the murder when I met Swamiji he told me Jayaylalithaa was no more listening to him and had there been a BJP government he could have settled the problem in no time. Now the police has turned heat on and you no more try to meet me. I will say I do not know either you or Appu.”
Appu, alias Krishnaswamy, an alleged don of this metropolis who hired the killers, was also a key accused in the murder case.
Subramanian’s statement, which was widely propagated, has come as a shock to many devotees as he accused the seers of having illicit relations with many women and how he stood guard outside the Shankaracharya’s room while those women were with him.
The statement, coming on the eve of filing of the charge sheet tomorrow in the Sankararaman murder case, is a setback for the two seers. Mr Prem Kumar said the1640-page charge sheet would be filed tomorrow at 11 am. In all 25 persons have been arrested and 476 witnesses examined, he added.
Meanwhile, a Sessions Court today adjourned to February 3, hearing on the anticipatory bail petition filed by the Kanchi Acharya Jayendra Saraswati in the “Tirukkottiyur” Madhavan assault case, after the prosecution reiterated that it would abide by the earlier undertaking that the seer would not be arrested in this case.
When the case came up for hearing before Principal Sessions Judge P Murugesan, City Public Prosecutor T V Ganesh sought an adjournment stating that orders from the Supreme Court were expected on the petition filed by the Tamil Nadu Government seeking modifications in its order while granting bail for the seer in the Sankararaman murder case.
Mr Ganesh pointed out that the Supreme Court had prohibited the seer from entering the mutt till the chargesheet was filed in the case following which the acharya chose to stay in Kalavai. Following this the Judge posted the matter to February 3.
Meanwhile, the Judge posted to January 25, the bail pleas filed by Mutt Manager N Sundaresa Iyer and key accused Kathiravan, in the Radhakrishnan assault case.
In a related development, Mr Justice M Thanikachalam of Madras High Court posted to January 24, hearing on the bail pleas filed by Chinna, alias Rajni and five others in the Radhakarishnan assault case.
