Bengaluru, Bidding goodbye to worldly affairs, senior Karnataka BJP leader and former minister B.J. Puttaswamy on Friday embraced 'sanyas', or the ascetic way of life. Later this month on May 15, he will take over as the first pontiff of the Thaileswara Ganigara Mahasamsthana Mutt and be christened as Poornanandapuri Swami.

On Friday, Puttaswamy was initiated into sanyas or ascetism by Jayendra Puri, seer of the Kailasa Ashrama Mahasamsthana Mutt. On Thursday, he had taken Brahmacharya or the vows of celibacy.

The 83-year old politician was till recently the vice-chairperson of the Karnataka State Policy and Planning Commission. Earlier, he had served as a minister in the Jagadish Shettar cabinet. Puttaswamy was known for his proximity to former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa.