Mysterious death of Shiroor seer must be investigated
Swamijis of various mutts are in news for all wrong reasons now. Raghaveshwara Swamiji of Ramachandrapura Mutt faced rape charges and had to attend court in connection with that. The court finally ruled the swamiji had ‘illicit and immoral’ relationship with the survivor. Yet, he continues to be in the chair. Babas and self-declared godmen in North India are being jailed one after another over sex related charges. Mutts that had to be centres of spirituality and philosophy are becoming centres of politics, controversy, with even rape charges included. People have begun to view these places with suspicion.
The cultural centre of South India, Udupi, is no different from the rest. The difference of opinion between the head seers of eight mathas known as ‘ashta matha’ is very evident since long. Now, looks like this difference of opinion may have caused a death of one of the popular swamijis. Shiroor sri has died under mysterious circumstances. Doctors have confirmed the presence of poison in his body, and even consumption of food laced with poison.
Some allege that sri Lakshmivara Teertha didn’t die an accidental death; instead he was systematically eliminated. And there are many reasons to believe so too. Many a times, fights had transpired between all the eight mathas (referred to as Ashta Mathas). It could be that of a swamiji crossing the seas, one more swamiji loaning money to someone and then having threatened the man who’d taken money with life, etc. Pejawar seer going on a fast during the Paryaya festival of Puttige Swamiji so on and so forth.
Despite being a Brahmin mutt of a particular community, the bouquet of mutts often got into trouble with its pratices and rituals. But then, the mutts always projected themselves as hindu mutts. However, they could never follow a uniform hindu tradition at their places. Shiroor Lakshmivara Swamiji was responsible for the recent tiffs in the mutts. He had become some sort of an embarrassment for his fellows and devotees. Because Shiroor Sri led a very democratic life shunning most practices of the mutt. He spoke like a rational and like those who would have caused a positive revolution in the country. Alshmivara Teertha was interested in music, sports and other aspects too. He would mix freely with the people and involve them in mutt practices as well.
At the same time, he was also questioning the ways and means of politics and illegal happenings in the mutt. He had even spoken about making a foray into politics. He had expressed his desire to electoral politics too. Udupi swamijis have always shown their inclination towards politics. But Pejawar seer was never seen identifying with any particular party. But his influence is of very high order. He has openly supported Ram Janma Bhumi issue.
Shiroor Sri Lakshmivara Swamiji did not have this kind of diplomatic finesse in his approach towards politics. He did not have the ‘craftsmanship’ of Pejawar seer. He had even said “ All swamijis in Ashta Mathas, including me, have children” in a video that went viral on social media. With this, all the swamijis had faced embarrassing moments. The incident of main god had forced him to say most undiplomatic things against the other swamijis. He had said “If I do not get Pattada Devaru, I will move the courts against six yathis.” Not just this, he had even threatened to expose the illegal transactions of Udupi mutts. He had said “Pejawar seer has gun man. But the one who is facing life threat is me. Hence I need protection too,” he had said. In the very few days after he expressed that he didn’t feel safe, he had died of poisoning. If he didn’t get Pattada Devaru, he would have ensured that he somehow got the idol sooner or later. He would have exposed all the irregularities happening in the mutt complex, had he lived for some more time. He was a live landmine that would have claimed massive collateral damage. He was a threat for people around him too, including industrialists and politicians.
Hence this death has to be investigated. Doctors have already said traces of poison are found in his body. Swamiji never consumed meat. He was a pure vegetarian. He wouldn’t even eat out. How can the food prepared in mutt turn into poison? A complaint has also been registered on the death case in the police station. Pejawar seer’s name also figures in the list of Shirur Seer’s enemies. Hence it is Pejawar seer’s need too that the cause of the death be established. All the swamijis of the mutt have to press for an enquiry of Shirur Swamiji’s death. If they remain silent, they would be proving some of the doubts right with their silence and give rise to more rumours regarding this death.
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Karnataka Milk Federation enters Delhi-NCR, offers competitive pricing on Nandini products
New Delhi, Nov 21: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday launched the Karnataka Milk Federation's (KMF) Nandini brand milk products in the Delhi-NCR market, pricing them marginally lower than competitors to gain a foothold in the region.
The cooperative will retail four cow milk variants, curd, and buttermilk from Friday, with competitive pricing that undercuts established players like Mother Dairy and Amul.
Cow milk will be sold at Rs 56 per litre, full Cream Milk at Rs 67 per litre, Standardised Milk at Rs 61 per litre, Toned Milk at Rs 55 per litre, and curd at Rs 74 per kg.
"We have surplus milk in the state. KMF along with Mandya Milk Union will market surplus milk of 3-4 lakh litres per day in Delhi-NCR," Siddaramaiah told reporters after launching the products.
The federation currently collects 100 lakh litres of milk daily, with local consumption at 60 lakh litres, leaving a surplus of 40 lakh litres for expansion into new markets.
However, the Chief Minister acknowledged the challenges of transporting milk over 2,500 km, which takes 50-54 hours.
There is a need to find new markets for surplus milk and gradually the KMF should be able to sell 5-6 lakh litres per day in Delhi-NCR, he added.
KMF Chairman LBP Bheemanaik assured that milk quality would be maintained during transit.
The federation has already partnered with 40 dealers in the Delhi-NCR region to facilitate sales, he added.
With a robust infrastructure of 26.76 lakh milk producers, 15,737 dairy cooperative societies, and 15 district milk unions, KMF has a turnover of Rs 25,000 crore and exports dairy products to over 25 countries.
State Animal Husbandry Minister K Venkatesh and Agriculture Minister N Cheluvarayaswamy were present at the product launch.
ದೇಶದ ಹಾಲು ಉತ್ಪಾದನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಗುಜರಾತ್ ಮೊದಲ ಸ್ಥಾನದಲ್ಲಿದ್ದರೆ, ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ ಎರಡನೇ ಸ್ಥಾನದಲ್ಲಿದೆ.
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) November 21, 2024
ದೆಹಲಿ ನಗರದಲ್ಲಿ ಕೆ.ಎಂ.ಎಫ್ ಮತ್ತು ಮಂಡ್ಯ ಹಾಲು ಒಕ್ಕೂಟಗಳು ಸೇರಿಕೊಂಡು ವಿವಿಧ ಶ್ರೇಣಿಯ ಹಾಲನ್ನು ಮಾರುಕಟ್ಟೆಗೆ ಬಿಡುಗಡೆ ಮಾಡಿವೆ. ದೆಹಲಿಯ ನಿವಾಸಿಗಳಿಂದ ನಂದಿನಿ ಉತ್ಪನ್ನಗಳಿಗೆ ಅತ್ಯುತ್ತಮ ಸ್ಪಂದನೆ ದೊರೆಯಲಿದೆ ಎಂಬ ವಿಶ್ವಾಸ ನನಗಿದೆ.… pic.twitter.com/yUmTQknGzD
