Hot on the heels of the controversy around the lifestyle of self-proclaimed guru Radhe Maa, a new controversy is gaining momentum in Odisha over the alleged immoral activities of a godman in Kendrapara.
The district has been witnessing protests for last three days after a local channel reported that Baba Sarathi had spent three days in a posh Hyderabad hotel with an ‘MBBS student,’ ate tandoori chicken and drank whiskey.
The channel also carried a photo of baba wearing jeans and sunglasses in the lobby of the hotel in Hyderabad.
The locals are now demanding immediate arrest of Sarathi Baba. The state government on Thursday ordered a probe by the Crime Branch, which will look into the baba’s alleged immoral activities and illegal accumulation of wealth.
Meanwhile, section 144 has been imposed on the road leading to Kendrapara and areas around baba’s Sarathi Ashram in Barimula, places of violence in the last few days. Police had to resort to lathicharge and tear gas against the stone pelting protesters.
10 arrests have been made so far, while the government has decided to transfer Kendrapara SP, replacing him with Vigilance SP Nitinjeet Singh.
Sarathi baba, who established his Ashram in Odisha in early nineties, has denied the charges against him calling it an exercise to defame him.