The Karnataka government on Monday virtually ruled out handing over the probe into the heinous murder of Jain seer Acharya Kamakumar Nandi Maharaj, 51, with the state’s Home Minister claiming that the police are working impartially without any pressure.

“Our Police department is competent. No need to hand it over to CBI. Truth will be known after our department’s investigation is over. It is not right to make accusations. Legal action will be taken. The police are working impartially without any pressure,” Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said.

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The Home Minister’s statement came after the Bharatiya Janata Party accused the government of trying to misdirect the investigation and allegedly shielding the perpetrators.

“The murder of Sri Kamakumara Nandi Mahara is highly condemnable. The accused’s name was not even being revealed initially. Attempts were made to force local people to give statements that he (the deceased monk) was involved in some financial transactions. Attempts were made to give it an angle that his financial habits led to his murder. People suspect that the murderers are being protected. I think this is the height of appeasement politics. Karnataka Govt became active only after pressure. This is wrong…The murderers should be given the strictest punishment,” Union minister Pralhad Joshi said on Monday.

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Jain seer Acharya Kamakumar Nandi Maharaj was found dead at Katakbhavi in the Belgaum district Saturday evening, two days after he was reported missing from the Nandiparvat Jain Ashram.

As per the state police, the seer was murdered and his body disposed of in a 400-foot borewell. Two men, identified as Hasan Dalayat and Narayan Mali, were arrested from the Katakbhavi village in connection with the murder. The police claimed that the seer’s demand to repay the money he had lent to the accused was the likely motive behind his murder.

The absence of Acharya Kamakumar Nandi Maharaj, a resident at the Nandiparvat Ashram for the past 15 years, was noticed by devotees who arrived at the ashram on Thursday. A complaint was filed with the Chikkodi police station on Friday, leading to an investigation.

Following the detention of the two suspects based on their statements, the police conducted an overnight raid in Katakbhavi village. According to Superintendent of Police Sanjeev Patil, the police zeroed in on the two suspects after gathering information about people who had visited the ashram the day before the seer’s disappearance.

Notably, ahead of the Home minister’s statement, state minister Priyank Kharge had claimed that the seer’s followers were satisfied with the probe by the Karnataka police and had made no demands for an investigation by another agency.

“The Jain community is satisfied with the State Govt’s inquiry. They have not pressed for any other agency to be looking into this investigation. Dept of Home is competent enough, nobody will be spared. As far as BJP is concerned, they can demand whatever they want. Let the investigation report come out…The community is with the Govt, they know that there has been no malicious intent of the Govt and this seems to be a personal feud rather than a community issue. As BJP has no issues to take up, they want to take this up on communal lines,” Kharge said.

However, contrary to Kharge’s claims, Jain seer Varuru Gunadhara Nandi Maharaj launched a sit-in protest in Hubbali following the incident and demanded a CBI probe.

Acknowledging the demands by the seer, Parameshwara said that he has spoken to the Jain seers who were staging a fast in Hubbali and assured them of swift action. “The Police are working to immediately arrest the criminals and take legal action. Legal action is a natural process. There is no question of discrimination. After the incident, the police immediately took action after a complaint was made. The Jain monks in Hubbali were staging a fast, I spoke to them yesterday,” he said.