TRICHY, INDIA, May 10, 2012 (India Times): The body of Lakhsmana Narayana seer of Srirangam Balahari Purushothama Ramanuja mutt, who passed away in Kolkata on May 6, created a flutter in Srirangam on Wednesday over a dispute whether the mortal remains could be buried inside the mutt. The body of the seer was brought from Kolkata to Chennai on Tuesday night, and taken to Amma Mandapam in an ambulance.
The disciples of the deceased insisted that the body be buried inside the mutt, but the authorities of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments department objected, saying the mutt housed the Perumal temple. Srirangam tahsildar Rengarajan said it was either a Christian or Muslim tradition to keep a body inside a place of worship for rituals, and was not acceptable in the Hindu dharma. Three seers of the mutt are buried on the banks of the Kollidam, and to deviate from such a practice would set a bad precedent, the tahsildar said.
The 90-year-old seer was conducting the religious affairs of the 150-year-old Balahari Purushothama Ramanuja Mutt until January 30, 2009, when he vanished under mysterious circumstances. The Perumal temple inside the mutt had also been closed to devotees for the last 20 years following a dispute. Later, the temple along with its properties that included 20 acres were brought under the control of the HR&CE.