Ravi Shastri visits Karvalu Vishnumurthy temple in Karkala
Udupi (Karnataka), Mar 18 (PTI): Former Indian cricketer and coach Ravi Shastri on Tuesday visited the Erlapadi Karvalu Vishnumurthy temple in Karkala taluk, Udupi district with his family.
During the visit, rituals including Panchamrita Abhisheka, Kalapokta Puja, and Nagatambila Seva were performed for the temple’s presiding deity, the original Naga deity, followed by a grand Mahapooja to Lord Vishnumurthy.
Between 2007 and 2025, Shastri visited the Karvalu Temple 13 times, offering special prayers to the Naga deity. Every time, he was escorted by his distant cousin and a former journalist, the late Manohar Prasad, but Prasad was no more, and Shastri remembered his commitment to the growth of the temple.
Shastri’s ancestors hail from Erlapadi Karvalu of Karkala taluk in Udupi district.
His grandfather, M V Shastri, was a noted doctor in Mangaluru during the 1950s, while his father, Jayadratha Shastri, pursued his education in Madras before becoming a doctor and settling in Mumbai. Though there are not many from Shastri's clan living in Karvalu, the temple devotees, elders and leaders still remember the family, said an elder of the village.
Born and raised in Mumbai, Shastri completed his education there before joining the Indian cricket team. Since the birth of his daughter, Alika, he has made it a tradition to visit the temple annually and offer prayers.
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Two wanted men held after shootout with police in Delhi's Dwarka
New Delhi (PTI): Two men accused in an attempt to murder case in southwest Delhi's Chhawla area were apprehended after a shootout, an official said on Sunday.
The accused, identified as Rocky (22) and Sumit alias Koki (24), were allegedly involved in an attempt to murder on April 17, he said.
According to police, the incident involved two assailants arriving on a motorcycle, with one of them allegedly attempting to fire at the complainant from close range. However, the weapon malfunctioned, and the duo fled the spot.
Acting on specific inputs, a police team intercepted the suspects near the Urban Extension Road (UER) at around 5.35 am when they were riding a motorcycle.
When asked to surrender, Rocky allegedly opened fire at the police team and discharged three rounds. One of the bullets struck the bulletproof vest of a head constable, narrowly missing him.
"The police team retaliated in controlled self-defence, firing three rounds and injuring Rocky below his left knee. He was subsequently overpowered after a brief scuffle," a senior police officer said.
Sumit alias Koki, who was riding the motorcycle, was also apprehended at the spot with a loaded weapon and a live cartridge, police added.
The injured accused was shifted to a nearby hospital for treatment. The police said further investigation is underway to ascertain the motive behind the attack and to identify any other persons involved in the conspiracy.
