The funeral ceremony caused massive disturbances of one kind and another. Due to the Indian authorities’ total disregard of the well-being of the populace, which was demonstrated by their usual ultra-tight security arrangement for VVIPs, those in Puttaparthi were cynically left without food or drink!
Here is the report from The Times of India, Apl 26:-
“…confusion pervades beyond the gates of the Central Trust. While thousands of devotees keep pouring into Puttaparthi to wait in queues stretching up to 2-3 kms for that last glimpse, there appears to be little co-ordination between the Central Trust and the cops on how to handle the surge. “All they are interested are VVIPs and VIPs. We commoners are left to fend for ourselves,” said Kutumba Rao who has come from Rajahmundry. It was the same story for a majority of over one lakh devotees who had reached Puttaparthi by Monday evening.
The consideration for VIP security hasn’t helped matters: Even milk vans have not been allowed to enter the town since Sunday night. Hotels, canteens, eateries, shops and other business establishments have also been shut. “We are helpless. The devotees are thirsty and hungry but we cannot serve them as everything is shut. There is no milk to serve even tea,” said L Rajeev, a hotel manager.
A senior police officer said: “What can we do. VVIP bandobast is mandatory. All top functionaries are coming. So, many roads have been closed.” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi are expected on Tuesday. Many other chief ministers are also expected.
Cops blame Trust for chaos at Puttaparthi: With VIPs queuing up to pay respects to Sai Baba, thousands of ordinary devotees and locals of the town have been left to fend for themselves with the extremely tight bandobast leaving them without essential commodities like food, water and a roof over their heads for an overnight stay.
The cops were also left clueless on how to manage the surge of devotees at the Sai Kulwant Hall. They blamed the Trust members for the mess. “We along with the district collector had told the Trust members to organise the darshan at the Hill View stadium. But they did not heed to our request. The stadium has a capacity of 50,000 and in his lifetime all big events, including his birthday, were celebrated there. Sai Kulwant Hall has limited capacity and has no proper entry and exit routes. Hence, huge lines spill on to the road. And since the roads are narrow, we had to close the shops.” Trust sources, however, said that it wasn’t practical to keep the body in an open stadium in this heat.”
Meanwhile, the struggle for predominance over the multi-billion dollar fortune left behind by the self-professed ‘penniless’ Sathya Sai Baba who owned no property (but for a literal township and more) and over for what it will be used in future, is not in the public eye – bad taste while the burial is progressing. The strongest apparent contender namely Satyajit (a Tamil) is keeping a low profile away from the throngs and is under police protection.
ECONOMIC TIMES – IANS, Apr 25, 2011, 02.53pm IST HYDERABAD: “The Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust will meet to take some key decisions after Sathya Sai Baba’s last rites Wednesday, with his death leaving a big question mark on the future of his massive spiritual empire estimated to be worth Rs.40,000 crore. With Sathya Sai Baba passing away Sunday, the trust will decide on how to carry forward its activities and who should lead it as Baba has apparently not named a successor.”
The Magic Silver Box: On top of all the excitement, it is hilarious that no less a figure than the Solicitor General of India stands forth to vouchsafe to India his Baba dream… one which proved again that Baba dreams are products of one’s own mind and have not truth in them at all. The Times of India takes up the story…
“Sunday night, Sathya Sai Baba appeared in the dream of solicitor general of India Gopal Subramaniam and told him to search his bedroom in the residential Yajur Mandir complex. “There is a silver box. Open it and you will find detailed instructions on how to run the Sai Central Trust, ” Subramanian claimed the Baba told him in the dream. The first thing that Subramaniam did on Monday morning was to tell the Trust members about the dream. The cops were summoned to open the residential complex which had been sealed since last week after allegations that “valuables” from being stolen from there. A team led by DIG Charu Sinha entered the Baba’s spartan bedroom but found nothing. “There was a bed, a chair and a medicine chest. But there was no silver box or any documents or will of the Baba,” a cop told TOI.”
SEX ABUSE CHARGED NITYANANDA, WORSHIPS A ‘ROLE MODEL’!
There were protests from many devotees of Sathya Sai Baba when the news came out that Swami Nityananda of sex abuse fame was said to be coming to the funeral. But to no avail. What does this tell us about India? Nityananda was allowed to walk alone to do his pranams to the coffin contents, the same way as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi did at the same ceremony. What does this tell about India? Nowhere else could this be allowed! Nithyananda told the CBI “I am not a man” and gave preposterous answers to some of the questions, as one might expect by someone caught red-handed on video! Letting him strut his stuff prominently before the TV and massed crowds of VVIPs and some rich devotees who all want to distance themselves from even a stray thought about sexual abuse was an affront to all devotees and must have been uncomfortable for the heads of State! Is this not a telling sign about morality in Indian ‘spiritual circles’.
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