Kancheepuram: BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) president L K Advani today (Nov 22, 2004) called on Vijayendra Saraswathi, Junior pontiff of the Kanchi mutt in Kancheepuram.

After a 35-minute meeting with the Junior Acharya, Advani told reporters "I hope this unfortunate episode of the arrest of Kanchi Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswathi will end soon. In this, public opinion and judicial opinion will certainly have a say," he said before leaving for Vellore to call on Jayendra Saraswathi.

Spotlight: Kanchi Jayendra Saraswathi's Arrest

He said he had an occasion to have a 'deep discussion' with the Junior Pontiff on the developments in the last two days. "I am proceeding to Vellore to meet Jayendra Saraswathi, in whose case a court had refused to grant extension of police custody," he said.

'I will decide whatever I have to say only after meeting the Shankaracharya. The developments have been extremely distressing. We have expressed our concern and had submitted a memorandum to President A P J Abdul Kalam. During the past three days, we and others have been staging dharnas and protests," he said.

Advani is scheduled to address a public meeting at Chennai later in the evening.