On November 11, 'Hindu psyche was shaken'.

One of most revered religious figures, Kanchi Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswati, was arrested for allegedly masterminding the murder of former Kanchi mutt employee Sankararaman.

The police picked up the seer from Mahboobnagar in Andhra Pradesh in a midnight operation. He has since then been lodged in the Vellore prison in Tamil Nadu.

The pontiff and Sankararaman were apparently not on good terms. The latter is said to have been unhappy with the seer 'misusing his authority'. In a letter addressed to Jayendra Saraswati on August 30, Sankararaman had threatened to take him to court and have him removed as Shankaracharya.

Three days later, on September 3, five people hacked him to death.

The police claimed that during investigation, the five people who were arrested in connection with the murder 'confessed' that the crime was done at the behest of the Shankaracharya.

The seer's bail plea is pending before a Kanchipuram court. The Supreme Court is also hearing a plea from his counsel.

His arrest came in the aftermath of some political drama in the state. Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam president M Karunanidhi had alleged that the state government was hesitant to take action against the seer. For a chief minister who is considered close to the higher sections of Hindu society, the statement was an affront to her efforts to win over the Dalit vote.

The arrest came soon after and just before a proposed DMK rally to protest against the administration's inaction in the case.

Also see: Faltering faith

Also read: Who was Sankararaman

Photographs: DIBYANGSHU SARKAR/AFP/Getty Images