A charge of attempted murder now slapped on Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswathi, who is already in jail in a murder case, has shocked his followers.

A second arrest warrant was served Tuesday on the 71-year-old pontiff in Vellore jail, about 200 km south of here.

This relates to a murderous attack on a man in Chennai the police believe was carried out by the same gang that killed a prominent devotee of the Kanchipuram mutt in September who had turned against the Shankaracharya accusing him of wrongdoing.

Also Tuesday, both Vijayendra Saraswathi, the junior pontiff, and Y. Thyagarajan, Jayendra Saraswathi's advocate, had voiced hope that the judiciary will not extend the judicial remand.

The Madras High Court has rejected the Shankaracharya's bail plea last week. Now, after being charged in another case involving a murder attempt, it would be difficult for the seer to come out of jail.

Police sources say a third case could also be registered against the Shankaracharya.

Followers of Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswathi are stunned by the fresh development, just when they were hoping and praying that he would walk out of jail and resume his activities.

The religious leader was arrested in Andhra Pradesh on Nov 11 on a murder charge and brought to Tamil Nadu. His arrest has sparked protests in parts of the country, but Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalitha has denied her government was biased in the case.

--Indo-Asian News Service