Kerala priest held for threatening to kill President Kovind

P Jayaraman, a priest at the Chirakkal Bhagwati temple, made a call to the police control room.

A temple priest in Kerala’s Thrissur was arrested on Monday for allegedly making a death threat against President Ram Nath Kovind, who is on a three-day visit to the state, police said.

Chennai: President Ram Nath Kovind waves to the crowd as he leaves after meeting DMK leaders MK Stalin and Kanimozhi at Kauvery hospital, where their father and party chief M Karunanidhi is being treated, in Chennai, on August 05, 2018. (PTI)

P Jayaraman, a priest at the Chirakkal Bhagwati temple, made a call to the police control room saying he will plant a bomb at the venue where the President was slated to address a meeting on Tuesday, officials said.

Kovind is scheduled to inaugurate the centenary celebrations of St Thomas College in Thrissur on Tuesday.

Police arrested Jayaraman within an hour after identifying the call location.

He told the police during the interrogation that he made the call in an inebriated state. However, his family members said he has been undergoing treatment for a mental illness.

Senior police officers are questioning him.

The President arrived on a three-day visit on Sunday. He will offer prayers at Guruvayoor Sree Krishna temple before leaving for Delhi.