Mystic dies of suffocation

[dArKeR]

Madras - An Indian mystic who vowed to spend a weekend buried underground to show his desire for world peace has died of suffocation, police said on Wednesday.

Ananda Swami, 22, had performed the ritual twice before but this time overzealous followers packed the soil tightly on top of his 2m deep pit lined with bricks, police said.

Swami had told supporters on Saturday upon entering the trench that he was performing penance to seek world peace and to bring rain to the drought-hit southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

But when the crowd returned on Monday to the pit in Kondayampatti village, 385km south of the state capital Madras, Swami failed to rise.

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