The Melkote Temple Trust, on Monday, suspended Narasaraja Bhat, archak of the Cheluvarayaswamy temple, in connection with the four-year-old ornament misuse case. The decision was taken at a meeting in Melkote following instructions from the Department of Religious Endowment to take disciplinary action against Narasaraja Bhat in connection with the case.
Narasaraja Bhat is facing charges of dereliction of duty, breach of sanctity of temple and misuse of power. The charges of “receiving gold ornaments as gifts from devotees, taking gifts to his home and taking away parts of diamond-studded gold ornament, Vajrangi, resulting in its weight loss,” against Narasaraja Bhat are said to have been proved during inquiry.
The Assistant Commissioner’s court in Pandavapura ordered the trust to take disciplinary action, including keeping Narasaraja Bhat under suspension, a few weeks ago. However, the trust had not initiated any action.
Mandya Deputy Commissioner B.N. Krishnaiah had also instructed the Chief Executive Officer of the temple trust to initiate action against the archak. Instead, the trust had submitted a report to the Department of Religious Endowment seeking its intervention in the issue.
Recently, the department ordered the trust to implement the Assistant Commissioner Court’s order. This prompted the trust president to convene a meeting, sources in the trust told The Hindu .
Meanwhile, the trust appointed Varadaraja Bhat as the archak of the temple temporarily.
