Bangalore : The Ramachandrapura Mutt case has taken a murkier turn after the brother-in-law of singer Premalatha Divakar committed suicide by shooting himself at his residence in Karnataka’s Puttur taluk.

Shyamprasad Shastry was said to have been under pressure to settle the case amicably. In a complaint to the police, Shyamprasad’s wife Sandhyalakshmi alleged that her husband had received several threat calls from anonymous persons to resolve the case amicably.

The anonymous callers reportedly wanted Shyamprasad to prevail over his brother Divakar Shastry and sister-in-law to withdraw the complaint against the pontiff of Sri Ramachandrapura Mutt, Raghaveshwara Bharati Swami.

Last week, Premalatha and Divakar Shastry were arrested by the police after a few employees of the mutt lodged a complaint accusing the couple of blackmailing the seer. Within hours of their arrest, the couple’s daughter Anshumathi lodged a police complaint alleging that her mother was sexually harassed on several occasions by the seer. The couple is still behind the bars, as their bail plea is scheduled for hearing on Wednesday.

According to the police, Shyamprasad received a call after lunch on Sunday. He appeared upset as he threw his mobile phone in rage and locked himself inside a room. Later, he shot himself with a licensed revolver, the police said.

Shyamaprasad was rushed to a hospital where he breathed his last. The Akhila Bharata Janavadai Mahila Sanghatane has sought an impartial prove into the case. “Day by day, the issue is taking a shocking turn. We want justice for singer Premalatha,” Sanghatane vice-president K. S. Vimala said.