Police are questioning the pontiff of a mutt, an engineering student and a lawyer over the suicide of Basavalingeshwara Swami, the head of the influential Sri Kanchugal Bande Mutt in Ramanagara district.
The three were arrested for abetting the suicide and remanded in judicial custody by a court in Ramanagara. Police later approached the court, seeking to question the trio in custody. The court remanded them in police custody until November 5.
The three are Mrutyunjaya Swamy, 45, the head of Makkala Devara Mutt, popularly known as Kannur Mutt, also in Ramanagara district; Neelambike alias Chandu, 21, an engineering student from Doddaballapura; and Mahadevaiah, 62, a retired teacher and lawyer.
A senior police officer said: "We need to question the trio thoroughly, so we requested the court for their police custody. We will investigate why they targeted the seer and whether more people were involved in defaming the deceased swami."
Basavalingeshwara Swami, aka Basavalinga Swami, was found hanging in the puja room at the mutt located in Kempapura village on the morning of October 24. He left behind a purported death note, citing blackmail and attempts to defame him.
Police arrested the three people based on the death note. Police have found out that Neelambika is close to Mrutyunjaya Swamy and the heads of other mutts.