What Is Happening At Baba's Abode?

The central government has taken a serious note of the goings-on at Prashanthi Nilayam, the spiritual abode of the renowned Godman Satya Sai Baba.

The Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is said to have personally enquired about the activities of Satya Sai Central Trust which manages the huge spiritual empire of Baba who is revered by millions of his devotees as the God-incarnate.

Perturbed over the reports in a section of media about the mismanagement of Trust funds, bungling over Baba’s health and the internal tussle for control, the Prime Minister has sought reports from Union Finance and Home Ministries and also from the state government.

The former Chief Justice of India and a member of Satya Sai Central Trust Justice P N Bhagavathi is understood to have submitted a report to the Prime Minister’s Office on the recent developments.

The Punjab Governor and an ardent Baba devotee Shivraj Patil has also reportedly expressed serious concern over a string of negative media reports. There is a growing feeling among the devotees and the officials that unless the government steps in and sets the house in order now, the reputation of Sai Baba and the institutions he has created could be in danger.

Already, certain selfish elements in the Ashram establishment are taking advantage of the prevailing confusion and have set their eyes on the huge money and jewellery under the control of the Trust.

According to a banner story in “Andhra Jyothy”, several truck-loads of gold ornaments were smuggled out of Prashanthi Nilayam and taken to Bengaluru. Though customs officials stopped the vehicles transporting the valuable jewellary and other items, they were finally let off on the ground that the ornaments belonged to Satya Sai Trust. There was pressure from higher-ups not to seize the vehicles, the report said.

It is estimatd that nearly 10 tonnes of gold is kept in the vaults of Baba’s rest room inside the Prashanthi Nilayam. Some insiders have set their eyes on this huge treasure.  Despite the police assurance that fool-proof security has been provided at the entry and exit points of the Ashram and also around Baba’s personal quarters, the valuables were shifted out of the premises without any objections. It is believed that the truck loads of ornaments were shifted to Baba’s Whitefield ashram in Bengaluru.

Meanwhile, the state government is now engaged in gathering financial details of the Satya Sai Trust in the midst of conflicting reports about its functioning. The estimates of Trust properties vary from Rs 30,000 crore to Rs two lakh crore. The surveillance has been stepped up in and around Puttaparthi and several intelligence sleuths have been deputed to the pilgrim town to gather more information about the Trust and its functioning.

As Baba battles for life, several conspiracy theories are floating around regarding his health, successor issue and the huge properties of the Trust. The former Chairman of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams D K Adikesavulu Naidu and others had alleged that there was a “systematic attempt” to deny Baba proper medical care and that he has become a captive in the hands of the Trust members.