UK Hindu priest `blackmailed young men into having sex with him’

Purohit came to Britain, from east Africa, at age seven. His father, also a priest, founded the Shree Shakti temple and brought up his sons to be priests. Harish was the moderniser, attempting to bridge the gap between older and younger members of Leicester’s Hindu community. He performed pujas in English and was happy to explain and discuss what lay behind the ceremonies and rituals.

Harish had another job in the city’s administration. He was a manager in Leicester City Council’s social services department and so doubly respected. A few years ago he went into business with a friend setting up and running a chain of care homes for people with learning difficulties. The business was clearly successful and this reflected in his flashy car, a silver BMW 320, and the house, where he was murdered, that he was renovating.

In the week since he was found stabbed to death it has emerged that his family and his partner of four years, solicitor Anjana Joshi, knew of and accepted his sexuality, a fact that was hidden from the wider community. Anjana Joshi, who revealed that the couple were trying to have a child through IVF, said that she had always known about Harish’s sexuality and that this made no difference to their relationship. She said: “When you love someone, that love is unconditional.” She described the man she met after his first marriage broke down in 1992 as a “godly person who took away the darkness and brought in light wherever he went. He was totally loving and caring, an incredible person.”

Joshi’s view of her lover is shared by many who worked with him. Purohit was a popular priest, much praised for his work with young people in the community. MP Keith Vaz who had been associated with him, described Purohit as a “a dynamic young priest who had served the community of Leicester well.” Mahendra Pandya, president of the National Association of Hindu Priests, said: “He was a kind and honest person. I can’t understand why anyone would want to hurt him.”

But those who knew Purohit the gay swinger saw a side to him that many believe may have been the reason for his murder. An Asian gay friend of Purohit’s said: “Harish had lots of enemies. He treated a lot of people on the gay scene very badly. A lot of people didn’t talk to him. They hated him.”

It is alleged that Purohit exploited his status as respected community leader to blackmail young men to have sex with him. According to a report in The Observer newspaper, the ongoing police investigation has found that Purohit would regularly use his position in the community to force young men to have sex with him. As priest and community leader he would offer support to Asians who had concerns about their sexuality and encourage them to “come out” and then demand sexual favours. The paper says that Purohit would threaten to tell the parents and friends of those who refused to have sex with him that they were gay. Scared of social ostracisation most complied. According to The Observer, “On at least one occasion he is accused of committing rape.” As Purohit’s standing in the community grew so did his powers of manipulation. He became a volunteer for a gay helpline and, according to The Observer, “continued to use his blackmail tactics on the vulnerable Asians who would call thehelpline. He would offer to meet them, discuss their sexuality and then blackmail them into sex.”

Within the gay community he became a figure to be avoided at all costs. A friend, who refused to be named, told the paper, “He was a lovely bloke with a fantastic smile and real charisma. He loved to camp it up on his nights out and he loved dancing while on poppers. We had a lot of good times but I stopped hanging around with him because I was being tarred with the same brush. He was revered within the general Hindu community because of his work as a priest but he was hated within the gay community because of what he had done.”

This case is one of the most high profile murder hunts undertaken by the Leicestershire police with over 100 officers working on the case. However, the investigation is being hampered by the unwillingness of people in the community to come forward with information. Despite enormous publicity about the case, police helplines have received just 15 calls in the week since the murder.