THE BLESSED GO TO BHOPAL

In poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, godmen and politicians are natural allies. Several prominent leaders from both the BJP and Congress are deploying babas of various hues to rally the faithful to their electoral cause.

- Rahul Noronha

Never before has the intertwining of religion and politics been so pronounced in the run-up to an election in MP. Hindu religious preachers— ranging from the well-known to the emerging—are crisscrossing the state, delivering professionally organised sermons at the behest of their political hosts. The magnetic pull of their sermons endears crowds numbering in the hundreds of thousands and makes them a coveted asset for politicians seeking an edge in the assembly election scheduled for November.

Interestingly, the utilisation of these preachers isn’t exclusive to leaders of the BJP, often accused of practising Hindu nationalism. These godmen are being used as much by members of the Congress, who adopt ‘soft Hindutva’ to counter their opponents.

Foremost among these babas is the enigmatic Dhirendra Krishna Shastri of Bageshwar Dham in Chhatarpur. Shastri hit the headlines when a rationalist organisation in Nagpur challenged his claimed miracles. Practically every politician aspiring to contest the election is vying for his favour, except perhaps Lahar MLA and leader of the Opposition Dr Govind Singh, who advocates distancing politics from godmen.

Early last month, Shastri made a significant appearance in Chhindwara, upon an invitation from Kamal Nath, the state Congress president. Nath, who represents Chhindwara in the assembly and has his son Nakul representing the constituency in the Lok Sabha, welcomed the baba with aarti.

Shastri was also hosted in Raghogarh, represented by former minister Jai Vardhan Singh. Congress leaders, sources say, maintain a connection with Shastri via Alok Chaturvedi ‘Pajjan’, their party MLA from Chhattarpur, who is said to be behind Shastri’s rise as a godman.