’Bhole Baba’, self-styled godman, under lens after Hathras stampede kills 107: All about him

After a stampede at a religious gathering left 107 people dead and several others injured in Pulrai village of Uttar Pradesh's Hathras, the man for whose 'satsang' they were gathered for is now under lens.

Bhole Baba, the self-proclaimed godman, had organised the 'satsang' under Hathras SDM's permission to organise a 'private event'.

But who is Bhole Baba?

Bhole Baba alias Narayan Sakaar Hari or Sakaar Vishwa Hari, is a godman with followers across several states including Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Rajasthan, among others.

He is said to have several political connections and has been seen with several leaders on various occasions.

Baba hails from Etah district in Uttar Pradesh. After completing his education, he claims to have joined the Intelligence Bureau (IB). However, there are no proofs of that as such.

It is said that he resigned from his government job in late 1990s and turned towards spirituality. He then started giving religious discourses.

Baba does not have a social media account, nor does he wear the usual saffron robes or any such attires, but reports claim he has "millions" of followers.

Baba had also gained limelight for his large congregations during the Covid-19 pandemic. India TV, in a report, cited sources as saying that he has several criminal cases registered against him.

LiveMint, however, could not verify the claims.

Financial assistance for the dead

After the news of the stampede surfaced, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his sorrow and announced ₹2 lakh ex-gratia for the next of kin of the dead and ₹50,000 for the injured.

It is being said that most of those dead are women.

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has also announced financial assistance of ₹2 lakh each to the families of the deceased and ₹50 thousand each to the injured following the tragic stampede.