The Rayalaseema region in Andhra Pradesh is known for its arid landscape and recurrent droughts. But it has long been fertile ground for bloody political feuds and powerful godmen.
At Puttaparthi in Anantapur district, Satya Sai Baba had celebrities and heads of states queuing up to seek his blessings. Bala Sai Baba, of the neighbouring Kurnool district, also had a large number of followers in India and abroad. Both the controversial godmen are no more, while a third notable name, Kalki Bhagwan, is under the scanner of the income tax department and Enforcement Directorate.
In October, a series of raids on 40 properties in Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Chittoor revealed that trusts and businesses controlled by Bhagwan had unaccounted income of more than ₹500 crore. The IT department unearthed ₹93 crore in cash and ₹409 crore in other assets. “There was about 2.5 million (approximately ₹18 crore) in US dollars alone,” said a statement issued by the department. “About 88kg of undeclared gold jewellery, valued at ₹26 crore, and diamonds weighing 1,271 carats, worth about ₹5 crore, have also been seized.”
Born Vijayakumar Naidu at Natham in Tamil Nadu in 1949, Bhagwan started his career as a clerk with the Life Insurance Corporation of India. In 1984, he and his close friend Shankar started a residential school at Rajupeta in Andhra Pradesh. Called Jeevashram, the school aimed at “providing alternative education and inculcating spirituality”.
By 1989, he had groomed himself as a godman, calling himself Kalki, after the 10th avatar of Lord Vishnu. His philosophy of ‘oneness’ and ‘instant nirvana’ became popular, helping him establish ashrams in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra. Devotees began referring to his wife, Padmavathi, as Amma Bhagwan.
This story is from the November 17, 2019 edition of THE WEEK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the November 17, 2019 edition of THE WEEK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?
IT IS ASKED, year after year, why Delhi’s air remains unbreathable despite several interventions to reduce pollution.
Trump and the crisis of liberalism
Although Donald Trump's election to a non-consecutive second term to the US presidency is not unprecedented—Grover Cleveland had done it in 1893—it is nevertheless a watershed moment.
Men eye the woman's purse
A couple of months ago, I chanced upon a young 20-something man at my gym walking out with a women’s sling bag.
When trees hold hands
A filmmaker explores the human-nature connect through the living root bridges
Ms Gee & Gen Z
The vibrant Anuja Chauhan and her daughter Nayantara on the generational gap in romance writing
Vikram Seth-a suitable man
Our golden boy of literature was the star attraction at the recent Shillong Literary Festival in mysterious Meghalaya.
Superman bites the dust
When my granddaughter Kim was about three, I often took her to play in a nearby park.
OLD MAN AND THE SEA
Meet G. Govinda Menon, the 102-year-old engineer who had a key role in surveying the Vizhinjam coast in the 1940s, assessing its potential for an international port
Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets
THE INDIAN STOCK MARKET has delivered a strong 11 per cent CAGR over the past decade, with positive returns for eight straight years.
Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay
AFTER A ROARING bull market over the past year, equity markets in the recent months have gone into a correction mode as FIIs go on a selling spree. Volatility has risen and investment returns are hurt.
