Karnataka: 3 priests of Arkeshwara temple brutally murdered in Mandya, cash looted

New Delhi: In a shocking incident in Karnataka’s Mandya district, three priests of Arkeshwara temple were brutally murdered on Thursday night. The culprits of the heinous act and their motive are yet to be identified, however, reports suggest it to be a case of burglary.

According to police, the priests of Arakeshwara temple were stabbed to death in their sleep by the robbers, who later decamped with currency notes in the ‘hundi’ (donation box).

The priests were bludgeoned to death by the group of burglars who then looted the cash and temple offerings from the donation box and fled. The incident is said to have happened in the wee hours after 2 AM.

The deceased have been identified as Prakash (50), Ganesh (49) and Anand (40). All of them worked as temple priests as well as caretaker of the property and used to sleep in the premises, reported a leading Southern daily.

The police have formed team to crack the case and a manhunt has been launched to nab the murderers.

Meanwhile, Karanatak chief minister B S Yediyurappa has condoled death of the priests and announced ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh next of the kin of each of the deceased.

In a tweet, Yediyurappa said, “It is very disturbing to learn that the priests of the Arakeshwara temple in Mandya Ganesh, Prakash and Anand have been murdered by the burglars. Rs 5 lakh compensation will be given to family of slain temple priests. Miscreants will not be spared.”