Falahari Baba
Born
Gautam Mishra[1]
NationalityIndian
Other namesSwami Kaushlendra Prapannachari Falahari Maharaj
Occupation(s)Spiritual leader, preacher
Criminal statusIn Prison
Children1
Criminal chargeRape
PenaltyLife imprisonment
Date apprehended
23 September 2017[2]

Falahari Baba, also known as Falahari Maharaj (born as Gautam Mishra[1]), is a self-styled godman,[3][4] who has been convicted for raping a 21 year-old woman and sentenced to life imprisonment.[5] He is listed in the second list of "fake spiritual leaders" released by Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad, the apex body of Hindu sadhus.[6]

Life

His full name is Swami Kaushlendra Prapannachari Falahari Maharaj. He studied up to class XII and also holds an ITI certificate course from Allahabad. He left his home and came to Alwar, Rajasthan in the 1990s.[7] Falahari is married and has a daughter.[1]

He dubbed "Falahari" (meaning fruit eater) because, he survived by only eating fruits, reportedly.[1] He is reported to be 60 years old by The Times of India[8] and 70 years old by The Free Press Journal,[9] as of September 2017. He is associated with Ramanuja sampradaya.

He has been photographed with top political leaders and celebrities including prime minister Narendra Modi, home minister Rajnath Singh, the RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, UP CM Yogi Adityanath and Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje Scindia.[10]

He owns an Ashram in Alwar, called Venkatesh Divya Balaji Dham Ashram and also run Goshala in Alwar. In July, 2017, he had also attended to the Saint Sangam of BJP organized in Jaipur.[11]

Rape case and conviction

In September 2017, an FIR was lodged by the victim against Baba at Mahila police station of Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh. He was arrested on 23 September 2017, in Alwar.[8] International Business Times reported, the victim said in the complaint that following the conviction of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, she got courage and decided to report the matter to the police.[12]

He was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by Additional District court of Alwar on 27 September 2018.[10]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Mehta, Ashish; Sharma, Rajendra (25 September 2017). "Test confirms Falahari Baba is virile, police to file chargesheet in rape case". The Times of India.
  2. ↑ Kumari Singh, Harsha; Jacob, Jimmy (23 September 2017). "Rajasthan's "Falahari Baba" Faces Life Behind Bars For Raping Law Student". NDTV.
  3. ↑ Kumar, Ashok (26 September 2017). "'Didn't believe stories against Baba'". The Hindu.
  4. ↑ Zahoor, Taha (July 2018). "India's Unholy Godmen". Themediaproject.org.
  5. ↑ "Self-styled guru 'Falahari Baba' sentenced to life imprisonment for sexually assaulting 21-year-old". Times Now. 26 September 2018.
  6. ↑ Faraz Ahmad, Qazi (2 April 2018). "All India Akhada Parishad Releases Fourth List of Fake Babas". News 18.
  7. ↑ Sharma, Rajendra (16 December 2017). "Falahari Baba charged with rape, intimidation". The Times of India.
  8. 1 2 "Final arguments in Falahari Baba case to begin from September 15". The Times of India. 18 September 2018.
  9. ↑ Khan, Salman (21 September 2017). "Rajasthan: 70-year-old godman Falahari Baba charged for rape; admitted to hospital". The Free Press Journal.
  10. 1 2 "Life-term for rape accused Falahari baba whose photos with PM Modi, others went viral". Siasat. 27 September 2018.
  11. ↑ "कौन हैं फलाहारी बाबा, जिन पर है रेप का आरोप". BBC News (in Hindi).
  12. ↑ Ghosh, Sriparna (21 September 2017). "Ram Rahim effect: Law student breaks silence, accuses Falahari Baba of rape". International Business Times.
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