Ascetic dies, followers find over Rs 30 lakh earnings in his tiled roof house at Holalkere

CHITRADURGA: Followers of an ascetic, who lived in a modest tiled roof house in Holalkere and died a week ago, were in for a shock when they found over Rs 30 lakh in cash inside the house.

Gangadhar Shastri (70), who lived alone, used to offer consultation in astrology and conduct pujas on auspicious occasions. He owned 16 acres of farm land, 4 acres of coconut plantation apart from paddy fields. Last week, Shastri passed away.

Gangadhar Shastri and his modest house in Holalkere.

Two days ago, Shastri’s followers examined his house and found more than Rs 30 lakh in cash, in the form of currency notes and coins, stashed here and there. Most of the earning were his agricultural income while donations from his followers itself exceeded Rs 46,000.

The followers have now decided to convene a meeting on July 7 and set up a committee to manage the properties. They also decided to build a tomb for Gangadhar Shastri on his own farm land.