Nanjangud:  A 55-year-old priest has gone missing after he jumped into Kapila River for a swim at Nanjangud a couple of days ago.

Venkatesh Murthy, a priest at the town’s Lingabhatta Temple jumped into the swollen Kapila River from the new Railway bridge, after challenging his friends that he would successfully swim across the swollen river.

Venkatesh, who was found swimming in the swollen river for a while later went missing, a video of which has gone viral.

After the video went viral on Sunday, his family members lodged a complaint with Nanjangud Rural Police saying that Venkatesh has  gone missing since the past three days.

It is suspected that Venkatesh must have been washed away by the swirling waters.