Controversial spiritual guru Bala Sai Baba passed away at a private hospital in Banjara Hills, Hyderabad on Tuesday. He was 58. According to reports, Bala Sai Baba suffered a cardiac arrest at his ashram in Domalaguda on Monday night, after which his supporters rushed him to hospital. However, the doctors declared him ‘brought-dead’.
According to local reports, his supporters had brought him at around 2 am on Tuesday, after his health deteriorated. His body is being taken to Kurnool for his funeral. Bala Sai Baba’s real name is unknown. He is a resident of Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh, and is popular for spitting out shiva lingam from his mouth ‘miraculously’ on the day of Shivarathri every year, which rationalists dismiss as a mere gimmick.
Bala Sai Baba has a huge number of followers in Telangana as well as Andhra Pradesh. He also has followers from western countries, akin to Satya Sai Baba. In fact, both of them wear the same kind of attire and hairstyle. Once he claimed that it was Satya Sai Baba who had copied his style.
Bala Sai Baba and his aides have numerous cases against them both in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, which include land encroachment, cheque bounce etc.
Bala Sai Baba was born on January 1960. At the age of 18, he established his first ashram in Andhra Pradesh. Bala Sai Baba claims he is a Masters Degree holder, and also claims to have worked as the Vice Chancellor of Kalinga University. However, it is rumoured that he didn’t complete his class 10.
The controversial spiritual guru, also earned the wrath of Hindu groups, when he claimed that he was superior to Lord Venkateshwara. Responding to a question, during one of his sessions, on whether he was an embodiment of Lord Venkateshwara, he reportedly said, “I fulfil your wishes, not that stone.”