More than a month after Lakshmivara Theertha Swami, the popular seer of Shiroor Mutt in Udupi, Karnataka died, the report by the Forensic Science Laboratory has reportedly concluded that the seer died of natural causes.
An official statement by the police is awaited.
Highly placed sources in the Special Investigative Team (SIT) claimed that the FSL report concludes the death of the 30th head of Shiroor Mutt was caused due to a multiple-organ failure, following a cirrhosis of the liver.
According to initial reports, the 55-year-old mutt religious leader complained of a severe stomach ache after attending a Vanamahotsava programme in Shiroor village three days before his death on July 19. He died at the Kasturba Hospital in Manipal where he was admitted the previous day.
An official press release by Kasturba Hospital had said that the seer, well known for his love for bikes and karate, was admitted in the hospital at 1:05 am on 18 July and that he was found to be "critically ill with breathlessness, severe hypertension and massive gastrointestinal bleeding".
It added, “"There is suspicion of poisoning and toxicological samples have been sent. However, his condition continued to deteriorate rapidly in spite of the best efforts of the medical team."
The source in the SIT told TNM, “We will now consult with doctors at KMC to come to a conclusion. We need to know why doctors initially thought this was a case of poisoning.”
The statements made by the seer’s lawyer, and the subsequent developments of a woman being detained by the police, the missing CCTV footage of the mutt only led to multiple speculations on the seer’s death.
Speaking to TNM, Lakshmivara’s lawyer had revealed that his client was likely to file a legal suit against against the Vidyadheesha Theertha Swami over a disagreement regarding the custody of the ‘Pattatu Devaru Vittala’ or ‘presiding deity’.
But the source dismissed these theories saying as of now, after probing all the angles, the team didn’t have any reason to believe that this was a murder.