Nanded: In a sensational incident, a Sadhu from Karnataka was robbed and murdered in his bedroom at his ashram in Umri, a top police official said here on Sunday.
According to Nanded Superintendent of Police Vijaykumar Magar, at least two unknown persons sneaked into the ashram late on Saturday and threw chilli powder on the face, blinding him.
The Sadhu has been identified as Shivacharya Nirvanarudra Pashupatinath Maharaj, originally hailing from neighbouring Karnataka state.
The robbers quickly grabbed cash Rs.69,000, his laptop and other valuables in the bedroom worth approximately Rs.1.50 lakhs, besides his car keys.
As Shivacharya attempted to grapple with them, they killed him before fleeing from the spot.
The robbers rushed into the Sadhu’s personal car and sped off towards the road outside, but their car crashed into the main gate of the ashram with a huge noise.
“Hearing the loud noise of the car crash at that late hour, around 8-10 other ashram workers ran outside and saw the duo jumping onto a motorcycle and speeding off in the darkness. Later, we found the body of one of the robbers a short distance away from the ashram,” Magar told IANS.
In view of the sensitivity of the incident, Magar said around five crack teams have been formed and have fanned out into the district to nab the absconding accomplice.
“The motive was clearly robbery and the second murder may be due to thier rivalry or some differences among the two robbers… We have already identified the absconder killer and hope to nab him soon,” Magar added.
Hailing from Karnataka, Shivacharya Maharaj came to Nanded over a decade and set up the ashram which he ran along with a band of followers.-IANS News
