Swami Gautamanandaji Maharaj was elected as the 17th president of the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission, an official communication said.
Swami Gautamanandaji Maharaj succeeds Swami Smarananandaji Maharaj, who passed away in Kolkata last month.
The 95-year-old monk was elected at the meeting of the board of trustees of the Math and the governing body of the Mission held at Belur Math on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended his best wishes to Swami Gautamanandaji Maharaj on being elected as the 17th president of the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission.
“My deepest respects and best wishes to Most Revered Swami Gautamanandaji Maharaj on being elected as the President of the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission. I am sure that he will guide our society to greater wisdom and compassion,” the Prime Minister said on X.
“The Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission has a very special place in the lives of countless Indians. Their efforts to further popularise the ideals of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Maa Sharada Devi and Swami Vivekananda are noteworthy,” he said.
Born in Bengaluru in 1929, Swami Gautamanandaji came in contact with the Bengaluru branch of Ramakrishna Mission and joined the Order in the mid-Fifties.
In 2017, he was elected vice-president of the Order. As a diksha guru and vice-president, he travelled extensively in India and different parts of the world