Bengaluru: The Halasuru Gate police has arrested Adi Narayana, a resident of J. P. Nagar, for allegedly trying to kill Jnanendra by throwing a chemical substance on him.
During the preliminary investigation of the accused, it came to light that Jnanendra had used a chemical substance to kill him and threw it at him when he was at Karaga. Police said a search is on for another accused.
Jnanendr and the accused Adinarayan had a rivalry over Karaga from the past. The dispute has also gone to court. There is a competition going on among priests to carry out the Karaga. The reason is the high honorarium paid to the priests who carry the Karaga. Thus there are arguments and counter-arguments between the priests who carry the Karaga.
Similarly, this year too, it was under discussion. At that time, the temyple Board had allowed Jnanendra to carry the Karaga this time on the directions of the court.
Traditionally, during the Karaga festival, devotees throw flowers, chillies, rock salt and other items on the Karaga in the name of offerings. Taking advantage of it, Adinarayana threw a mixture of chemical and chilli powder at Jnanendra during the Karaga Mahotsava on April 6. This increased the rivalry and he informed it to Veerakumara who were sitting next to him.
Veerakumara, who noticed that the accused Adinarayana was escaping, caught hold of him, beat him up and handed him over to the board members. Police said Adinarayana was arrested on a complaint lodged by members of the Temple Board in this regard.
