MYSURU: A factional fight over temple revenue may have led to food for devotees being poisoned at the Kichguth Maramma temple in Sulwadi , which has killed 13 people, police said on Sunday.SP Dharmendra Kumar Meena said investigations were at an “advanced stage” and seven people have been detained so far, even as the Chamarajanagar district administration stepped in to dismiss the temple management committee and recommend that the muzrai department take over.Police said there were two groups within the temple management and among the priests who were at loggerheads over sharing of the temple revenue. Located on the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border, the temple draws rich and influential devotees, especially Tamilians, from Bengaluru and Tamil Nadu, sources said. Sulwadi itself is dominated by Christians who also repose faith in the deity, locals said.Japamalai, vice-president of the Martahalli gram panchayat, said the temple has a bank balance of about Rs 90 lakh. “Every day, at least 500 devotees from south Karnataka and Tamil Nadu visit this temple. The temple revenue was one of the reasons for the controversy over the management,” he said.Amid the brewing fight within, the temple electricity connection was cut off two months ago, SP Meena said.“We have detained two more people in connection with the case. The number of people detained is now seven. An FIR has been registered against six people and among them, three have been detained. The investigation has now reached an advanced stage,” he said.Officials said several temples in south Karnataka generate revenue running into lakhs of rupees a month and are managed privately. “The government will start an audit of private temples. Disputes over revenuesharing are common in these temples,” an official said.Hanur MLA R Narendra said he would urge the state government to take over the temple management. “The management was divided. The priests are divided. A group of priests even went to court. These things came to light only after this incident,” he said. “This is a clear case of sabotage. Someone mixed poison in the prasadam,” he said.Confirming that she had recommended that the muzrai department take over the temple in view of the suspected dispute within its management, Chamarajanagar deputy commissioner BB Kaveri told TOI: “It was a privately managed temple. We have for now brought the temple under the control of the district administration.”She said the administration would soon issue guidelines on the dasoha (charitable) system that temples will have to follow in distribution of prasadam and food. “Many temples have a system for mass distribution of food,” the DC said. “Guidelines are required to ensure that the food temples serve is safe.”The authorities also deputed police personnel at the temple as part of the ongoing investigation into the tragedy. Officials said the government is authorised under law to supersede any private trust managing a temple in the event of mismanagement or negligence.Meanwhile, residents blamed the taluk administration and police for the crisis. A local said it was an open secret that the temple was mismanaged and infighting was common in committee meetings.“If the government departments had taken over the temple earlier, such a tragedy could have been averted,” a local said.

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