Karnataka: Seer Found Dead in Belagavi Mutt, Police Recover Note

Basavasiddhalinga Swami. 

(Photo: Accessed by The Quint)

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A seer was found dead in his room at a Lingayat Mutt in Karnataka's Belagavi district, the police said on Monday, 5 September. They also recovered a note from the site.

Devotees found the body of Basavasiddhalinga Swami in his room on the Mutt premises, located in the Negila village of the Bailahongala Taluk.

The police reached the spot and began their investigation. As per the note, the seer did not blame anybody for his death, the police said.

In the note, the seer purportedly said that he alone was responsible for his death and that he took the step because he was "fed up" with life. He also apologised to his mother for taking such a step.

He further said that the mutt was now the responsibility of its committee members and devotees from the village.

"It appears to be a suicide and we are investigating the case. As of now, we have registered a case of unnatural death. A forensic team was also at the spot to collect all the evidence," Superintendent of Police Sanjeev Patil told The Quint.

This incident comes days after Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru, the seer of a Lingayat mutt in Karnataka's Chitradurga, was arrested for the alleged sexual assault of minor girls.

The seer has been charged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.