G Ravikiran

Has the controversial Swamiji Prabodhananda considered himself as an avatar of Ravana Brahma? Has he destroyed and desecrated idols of Hindu Gods and ridiculed them too often? Yes, he has, one may say going by the photos, portraits and records being recovered from the ashram premises at Chinnapolamada in Anantapur district. The searches were done by the officials in the wake of recent violence. The inspecting officials did not believe their eyes and they were left stunned when they came across a big photo featuring Prabodhananda as Ravana and his wife as Ravana’s consort Mandodari Devi. When asked about this, the ashram residents said that the Swamiji adored Ravana and spoke highly of the anti-hero of Ramayana.

There have been rumours spreading for a long time that the Swamiji was delivering discourses insulting Hindu Gods and that his followers were behaving in a suspicious, irreligious manner. In the multi-storeyed buildings of Ashram, the Swamiji has a huge prayer hall fitted with a large screen to telecast live his speeches. He also has a colourful, elegant Durbar hall beside his residence there. During his recent visit to Amaravati, Anantapur MP JC Diwakar Reddy submitted CDs and Videos as evidence of the Swamiji’s ungodly activities that are disturbing peace of local villagers. Against this backdrop, a TDP leader made a complaint at the Gooty police station and submitted CDs as proof of Prabodhananda insulting Hindu Gods, hurting sentiments of Hindu devotees and disturbing religious harmony.

The Gooty police checked the CDs and after satisfied with evidence, registered a case against the Swamiji. Meanwhile, none of the 250-odd Ashram residents has given any information about the whereabouts of Prabodhananda. He is stated to have many more Ashrams in other states but his managers are running their main activities from Anantapur Ashram from the beginning.