Guru ‘dead’ for a week, town alive with drama

On Monday, the sixth day of the so-called samadhi, they shifted the religious guru into a freezer to ensure for him a “Himalayan-type environment” because, they said, yogis go to the Himalayas for samadhi.

Dr Harpal, one of the doctors who examined Ashutosh Maharaj, told reporters that he was dead — the guru had no heartbeat, no pulse, and the ECG showed a straight line.

But disciples are adamant: the Maharaj may be “clinically dead, but is spiritually alive”. Ramakrishna Paramahansa, the guru of Swami Vivekananda, had gone into a similar state on several occasions, they claim.

The dera has lakhs of followers in Punjab and elsewhere. It has 110 centres in India and abroad, 36 of which are in Punjab. It controls properties worth hundreds of crores.

The dera has considerable influence in the Punjab government, which carved out a village called ‘Divya Gram’, named after the sect, last year. A majority of members of the panchyat of the new village are DJJS followers.

Ashutosh Maharaj has Z category security because of a perceived threat from hardline Sikhs, who have objected to certain practices and preachings of the dera. SSP Jalandhar (Rural) Jaspreet Singh, however, said that he did not know the guru’s actual condition.

Asked why the police could not enter the Maharaj’s room to check on the condition of a state protectee, the SSP said they could not interfere in a matter of faith, and were waiting for an announcement by the dera management.

In the meantime, he has set up a camp office on the dera premises to keep a watch on the situation.

Sources said the formal announcement of the guru’s death was being delayed by a dispute over succession. Three factions are reportedly involved — one led by the Maharaj’s old disciple Amarjit Singh alias Arvindanand, the second led by DJJS governing body president Adityanand, and the third led by a disciple named Sarvanand, who has been living on the dera premises for many years.

However, Swami Vishalanand and Sadhvi Jaya Bharti of the dera’s media wing denied there was a dispute.

Meanwhile, a man called Puran Singh, who claims to be a former driver of Ashutosh Maharaj, has filed a habeas corpus petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, seeking the release of Mahesh Kumar Jha alias Ashutosh Maharaj, the spiritual head of the dera, from the alleged illegal custody of four dera followers.

The high court has directed the Punjab government to file a status report by February 6. Justice M M S Bedi has also issued notices to Arvindanand, Soni, Narinder Singh and Vishalanand, all residents of the dera who, according to Puran Singh, want to usurp the dera’s property.

The petitioner’s counsel has informed the court that the dera has hundreds of crore in cash, and property worth over Rs 1,000 crore. He has said that the four dera followers have illegally confined the dera head, and barred both the petitioner and the media from the room.

Backstory

DJJS CAME up in the eighties and initially stuck close to mainstream Sikhism. In the nineties, it faced allegations of selectively using and misinterpreting the gurbani, and the dera moved closer to Hindu practices and institutions.

CM BADAL’s wife, the late Surinder Kaur, came under attack for paying obeisance to the dera head. It was alleged that Badal’s government funded a 2-km road and 66 KW substation near the dera. Amarinder’s government (2002-2007) banned its public functions for some time.

Just after Badal returned to power, Sikh bodies clashed with dera followers in Phagwara. Following violence at BJP MLA Harish Bedi’s programme in Ludhiana in 2009, all 19 BJP MLAs met Badal in support of the sansthan.

Punjab leaders have traditionally backed deras because the dera heads’ blessings to any party ensures a large number of committed votes.