By IANS,
Puducherry : Following the Supreme Court orders, the Puducherry government Wednesday appointed a fresh prosecutor to conduct the four-year-old murder case against the two Shankaracharyas of Kanchipuram and others.
The pontiffs have been accused of masterminding the killing of temple official A. Shankararaman in September 2003.
Sessions Judge D. Krishnaraja posted the matter to be heard on Oct 24 after all the files were handed over to prosecutor N. Devadass.
Shankaracharyas Jayendra Saraswati and Vijayendra Saraswati were arrested in November 2004 and January 2005 respectively on charges of ordering the murder of the official.
The police official who arrested the pontiffs – Prem Kumar – has since been dismissed from service.
The Supreme Court had transferred the case to Puducherry in 2005 on a plea from the Shankaracharyas.
The appointment of Devadass follows a plea by the junior seer, Vijayendra Saraswati, to change the prosecutor.
Devadass had obtained the acquittal of Puducherry’s present chief minister in a Central Bureau of Investigation case in the ‘nineties.