Veerendra Heggade

[2] He administers the temple and its properties, which are held in trust for the benefit of devotees and of Dharma.

[4] On 6 July 2022 he was nominated as Rajya Sabha member by President Ram Nath Kovind.

He belongs to the Pergade dynasty of Tulu Jain Bunt[6] Lineage, the hereditary trustees of the famous Sri Dharmasthala Manjunatha Swamy temple in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka.

He is the twenty-first member of the Pergade dynasty to hold the position of Dharmadhikari of the Dharmasthala Temple.

As Dharmadhikari, he has continued the traditions of the institution: Heggade has reached beyond his administrative role:

The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presenting the Padma Vibhushan Award to Dr. Dharmasthala Veerendra Heggade, at a Civil Investiture Ceremony, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on 8 April 2015