Many Indians will tell you that a sage guru can add a measure of potency to an otherwise mundane existence.
Pity the 400 followers of the so-called "guru in bling", Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who have followed their master's advice and castrated themselves in an effort to meet God directly.
Officers from India's elite Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) appear to have made a crucial breakthrough in a long-running investigation into the alleged mass castrations, last week gathering important testimony from victims and other witnesses as they prepare charges of grievous bodily harm against Ram Rahim.
With most of the victims apparently fearing for their lives if they speak out against Ram Rahim - he has 40 to 50 million followers around the world - investigators appear to have finally managed to crack the code of silence, with several witnesses now willing to testify in court.
"They [the victims] were told that only those who get castrated will be able to meet God," says Mr Chauhan's lawyer, Navkiran Singh.
Ashutosh Maharaj, whose followers believe he is still alive.
Mr Chauhan has said that in addition to fearing retribution from Ram Rahim's followers, many victims feared being made social outcasts if they came forward with their stories.
Already facing conspiracy charges over the 2002 murder of a newspaper editor who tried to investigate stories of wrongdoing emanating from inside his sprawling gated compound in the state of Haryana, as well as numerous charges of sexual exploitation of female followers, Ram Rahim has proved adept at avoiding conviction thanks in part to his value to politicians as a source of votes.
In state elections held late last year, it is believed that Ram Rahim helped to deliver tens of millions of voters to Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party in the crucial central and northern states of Haryana, Rajasthan and Punjab, helping the BJP win government.
Whatever the eventual outcome of the numerous criminal investigations he is facing, Ram Rahim is only one in a long line of Indian gurus to face accusations of scandal and chicanery. Last November, police arrested Baba Rampal Maharaj after a long and violent siege at his ashram in Haryana, when he refused to comply with court orders over a murder case.
Then there is the more bizarre case of the frozen guru, Ashutosh Maharaj, who was declared dead by medical authorities on January 29 last year but is being held in a deep freezer by followers in his Punjab ashram who firmly believe their sadhu is in a particularly uncommunicative state of meditation known as "samadhi".
Gurus play an integral role in daily life for many Indians, offering a pathway to enlightenment, and being the focus of such devotion can bring enormous riches - the spiritual enlightenment business worth about $35 billion a year in India.
http://www.smh.com.au/world/mass-castrations-officers-crack-code-of-silence-of-followers-of-indian-guru-ram-rahim-20150225-13o0z8.html
Pity the 400 followers of the so-called "guru in bling", Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who have followed their master's advice and castrated themselves in an effort to meet God directly.
Officers from India's elite Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) appear to have made a crucial breakthrough in a long-running investigation into the alleged mass castrations, last week gathering important testimony from victims and other witnesses as they prepare charges of grievous bodily harm against Ram Rahim.
With most of the victims apparently fearing for their lives if they speak out against Ram Rahim - he has 40 to 50 million followers around the world - investigators appear to have finally managed to crack the code of silence, with several witnesses now willing to testify in court.
"They [the victims] were told that only those who get castrated will be able to meet God," says Mr Chauhan's lawyer, Navkiran Singh.
Ashutosh Maharaj, whose followers believe he is still alive.
Mr Chauhan has said that in addition to fearing retribution from Ram Rahim's followers, many victims feared being made social outcasts if they came forward with their stories.
Already facing conspiracy charges over the 2002 murder of a newspaper editor who tried to investigate stories of wrongdoing emanating from inside his sprawling gated compound in the state of Haryana, as well as numerous charges of sexual exploitation of female followers, Ram Rahim has proved adept at avoiding conviction thanks in part to his value to politicians as a source of votes.
In state elections held late last year, it is believed that Ram Rahim helped to deliver tens of millions of voters to Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party in the crucial central and northern states of Haryana, Rajasthan and Punjab, helping the BJP win government.
Whatever the eventual outcome of the numerous criminal investigations he is facing, Ram Rahim is only one in a long line of Indian gurus to face accusations of scandal and chicanery. Last November, police arrested Baba Rampal Maharaj after a long and violent siege at his ashram in Haryana, when he refused to comply with court orders over a murder case.
Then there is the more bizarre case of the frozen guru, Ashutosh Maharaj, who was declared dead by medical authorities on January 29 last year but is being held in a deep freezer by followers in his Punjab ashram who firmly believe their sadhu is in a particularly uncommunicative state of meditation known as "samadhi".
Gurus play an integral role in daily life for many Indians, offering a pathway to enlightenment, and being the focus of such devotion can bring enormous riches - the spiritual enlightenment business worth about $35 billion a year in India.
http://www.smh.com.au/world/mass-castrations-officers-crack-code-of-silence-of-followers-of-indian-guru-ram-rahim-20150225-13o0z8.html
