Seer forced to resign after villagers find out he was born Muslim
Young Lingayat seer steps down after past identity as Muslim sparks controversy in Karnataka village.
Salar News
.png)
CHAMARAJANAGAR, 6 AUG
A seer was forced to resign from his position as the head of the State mutt after villagers discovered that he was a Muslim-born individual. The twenty-two-year-old man, who now goes by Nijalinga Swamy, was asked to leave the Gurumalleshwara Shakha mutt in Chamarajanagar’s Gundlupet taluka, ending a brief six-week tenure.
The controversy reportedly broke when a mutt employee accessed Swamy’s old phone and accessed his Aadhaar card and photos of him before his initiation, including images of him wearing a skull cap and holding a beer bottle. The discovery caused an uproar among some devotees.
However, Nijalinga Swamy denied ever hiding his past. He said that everyone knew about his previous religion.
“At a very young age, I was attracted towards Basavanna and his ideas. I used to perform puja just like any Lingayat,” he told the press. “My parents were frightened, and they sent me to a madrassa to study. It gave me another dimension, and at the age of 17, I took deeksha (initiation) to become a Lingayat.”
Nijalinga was born in Kalaburagi district and said he remains committed to Basavanna’s philosophy and will find shelter at another Lingayat mutt in Haveri district to continue his spiritual work.
Leave a Reply
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *