A few sex-obsessed babas India could definitely do without
Is becoming a self-styled "swami" or a "baba" the best profession in the country? These are the benefits of becoming a "baba" - he becomes popular instantly, has wealth that is not accounted for, has massive political and corporate contacts, has a large fan following in the form of devotees. The attractions go on and on. Besides all these, the babas also indulge in sexual misdemeanours.
One can only feel sorry for the gullible devotees and believers who are exploited by these babas. Many cases of sexual exploitation go unreported owing to the social stigma attached to it and social connections of these so-called saints. However, some of them have come to light after some of the victims mustered courage to spill the beans.
These are four prominent babas who preyed on their innocent believers, but finally law caught up with them:
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| Baba Parmanand was arrested on May 24 from Satna in Madhya Pradesh. |
1. Baba Parmanand
The police in Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh, on May 24, confirmed the arrest of this controversial "godman" on charges of sexual exploitation of women. An FIR had been filed against Ram Shankar Tiwari alias Baba Parmanand after several women registered complaints accusing him of sexually exploiting them in the name of treatment for infertility.
The police raided Parmanand's ashram in Barabanki and seized several CDs containing obscene videos of women, vulgar literature and porn movies. Parmanand was arrested from Satna in Madhya Pradesh and brought to Barabanki.
2. Asaram Bapu
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Asaram has been in jail in Jodhpur for the past 26 months. He was convicted after being accused of sexually abusing a 16-year-old girl at his Jodhpur ashram even as her mother was waiting outside. He has not only been accused of sexual assault but also rape and molestation. He, along with his son Narayan Sai, are in jail for exploiting women devotees.
3. Nithyananda
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The 293rd pontiff of the Adheenam Mutt in Bidari on the outskirts of Bangalore was arrested in June 2012 on charges of rape and molestation. After searching the premises of Nithyananda, the police were horrified to find a dump of condoms and "ganja" in the corner of a compound.
The then Karnataka chief minister, DV Sadananda Gowda, ordered the arrest of Nithyananda after several of his followers appeared on a private Kannada TV channel and accused the godman of exploiting them.
Arathi Rao, a follower of Nithyananda, gave a detailed account of her five-year experience with the guru. She alleged that Nithyananda repeatedly raped her and threatened her with dire consequences if she revealed it to anybody. Arathi also claimed that it was she who had secretly filmed Nithyananda's sex tapes with a Tamil actress.
4. Ichchadhari Sant Swami Bhimanand Ji Maharaj Chitrakoot Wale
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He was also a self-styled godman who preached spirituality while running a prostitution racket. Two air hostesses were among eight people arrested in February 2010 for flesh trade in the capital. The eight, including two men and six women in the age group of 19 to 30 years, were taken into custody near the PVR cinema at Saket in south Delhi while travelling in two cars. They included an air hostess who worked for an Indian carrier and another who was employed by a European airline.
The mastermind was identified as Shiv Murat Dwivedi, 39, alias Ichchadhari Sant Swami Bhimanand Ji Maharaj Chitrakoot Wale. Dwivedi, who belonged to Chitrakoot in Uttar Pradesh, had come to New Delhi in 1988 and worked as a security guard at a five-star hotel in Nehru Place.
He later worked for a massage parlour at Lajpat Nagar. He was arrested for carrying out prostitution 1997 and 1998. Subsequently, he changed his appearance and started calling himself Ichchadhari Sant Swami Bhimanand Ji Maharaj Chitrakoot Wale. He was based at a Sai Baba temple in Badarpur and gradually started a flourishing flesh trade racket in the guise of leading a spiritual life. He started holding religious discourses and congregations and even got a video CD titled "Shri Sai Amrit Varsha" released. He constructed a 200-bed hospital and a huge temple in Chitrakoot. The two air hostesses lived in posh areas of south Delhi.