Moorusavirmath succession dispute: Dingaleshwar Swami sets incumbent pontiff 45-day deadline to clear the air

Hubballi: Dingaleshwar Swami, who has been the focal point of the drama concerning the succession of Moorusavirmath, on Sunday set the seer of the institution Gurusidda Rajyogindra Swamiji a 45-day deadline to make his stance over the issue clear. The issue has been raging over the past few days, with legal advisor to the chief minister Mohan Limbikai among others coming down strongly on Dingaleshwar Swami over the latter’s claims as the rightful successor to the pontifical throne of Moorusavirmath in Hubballi.
Although Dingaleshwar Swami had initially claimed to have obtained permission to hold Satya Darshana – an open assembly of devotees – at the Gadduge or the seat of the seer, he was not allowed to go ahead with the event within its premises. Consequently, he addressed a congregation of devotees at the math’s Maha Dwara (main gate). “I am the rightful successor to Gurusidda Rajyogindra Swamiji, and I have all the documents to substantiate my claim,” said Dingaleshwar Swami, succinctly recapitulating briefly the events that had led compelled him to make such an announcement.
“Initially, I was not interested in staking any claim to the throne of Moorusavirmath. It was when Gurusidda rajyogindra Swami was in a spot of bother that I came to his help, and when he was faced with the issue of succession, I helped resolved the issue. The seer, along with 52 senior devotees of the math chose me as the successor. I helped the math clear a debt of Rs 1 crore,” said Dingaleshwar Swami.
Stating that he had been on keen to produce the documents to support his claims during the Satya Darshana, which he had planned to hold at the tomb of the Gurusiddeshwar inside the math, Dingaleshwar Swami said that it would not be appropriate to do so in an open assembly of devotees.
He said that he would return to Balehosur Math without a moment’s delay should Gurusidda Rajyogindra Swamiji deny his claims to the pontifical throne of Moorusavirmath. “If the Swamiji swears by the tomb of Gurusiddeshwara Swami to the effect that he did not name me his successor, I will return to Balehosur Math at once. I did not wish to be the pontiff of a big math, but rather I am keen on being a great saint,”said Dingaleshwar Swami, who charged seers of other maths of sabotaging him. “This issue can be resolved in no time if the senior devotees and the see make up their mind,” he added.
After concluding his address, Dingaleshwar Swami went inside the math, wherein he reportedly paid his respects to the saints buried within the premises.
Another claimant enters the scene
Pontiff of the Gubbalgudda Kempaiah Swami Math Mallikarjuna Swami’s entry to the scene of the drama on Sunday added another dimension to the drama. Mallikarjun Swami claimed that he had been named the successor to the pontifical throne of the Moorusavirmath as early as 1998 by the then seer Gangadhareshwara Swami. “This dispute is pending in the court, and we must allow the law to take its course,” said Mallikarjun Swami, expressing regret over the events that had transpired at Moorusavirmath on Sunday.
Traffic in Hubballi was thrown out of gear on Sunday with both Dingaleshwar Swami and Mallikarjun Swami arriving in the city with their respective followers in their retinue. The two processions resulted in traffic snarls on several thoroughfares of Hubballi.