Transfer Baba, The new political Godman

Hyderabad: He counts national leaders, chief ministers, legislators, senior civil servants and industrialists among his supplicants. Like most swamis, it is a mystery how he managed to acquire such a following, and the wealth that goes with it, but Ongole's Ramavadhoota Swamy has got it all.

Among the VIPs who reportedly prostrate at his feet are BJP leaders Sushma Swaraj, Murli Manohar Joshi, B S Yeddyurappa, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi and Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat.

BJP leaders L K Advani and Venkaiah Naidu are also believed to have visited Swamy. Former Andhra Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP) R R Girish Kumar and present DGP V Dinesh Reddy have also recently visited his ashram.

Swamy's powers, both political and occult, have earned him the sobriquet of Transfer Baba. Days after several Indian Police Service (IPS) officers were transferred in the state, sources say the police top brass are changing the list, allegedly at the behest of Swamy.

Additional DCP (Task Force) K Raghuram Reddy was posted as Superintendent of Police of Prakasam district, his first such posting. Police sources in Hyderabad told that the posting was not to the Ongole swami's liking.

Mysteriously Reddy's appointment was kept in abeyance. 'Raghuram Reddy has been asked not to take charge of his new assignment till further orders,' sources said. The IPS fraternity in the state, much used to meddling by ministers and elected representatives, is surprised by the power wielded by Swamy.

Swamy's saga of prosperity began about 15 years ago. Called M Venkateswarulu then, he came from a very poor family; his parents and brothers were daily-wagers, making extra money on the side by teaching children how to play the harmonium.

Swamy left for Haridwar early in his youth, joining the famous Dattatreya Peeth where he stayed for two years. Later, he returned to his native village of Jumpalavadipally.

Locals say he returned home with about 15 kg gold and cash, which were reportedly gathered from the Peeth that receives huge donations. Locals remember him after returning to his village and leading a normal life, taking care not to show off any wealth.

That's also when he began growing his beard, and giving the impression that he had returned from the Himalayas after tapasya (self-mortification).

Soon after, his ambition to add to his wealth seems to have got the better of him. Swamy is alleged to have encroached upon two plots of lands'one measuring 4.93 acres and the other 2.37 acres'in Prakasam and Nellore districts respectively.

The land belonged to the forest department, and the matter reached court, waiting to be settled.

Swamy watchers in Hyderabad say that over the last five years, the godman's clout has grown. Several politicians from the BJP, Congress, top industrialists, bureaucrats have been visiting his ashram in Chevuru village.

'It is quite strange as to how Swamy managed to get high-profile visitors. It is still a mystery,' they say.

It's not merely transfers that are Swamy's forte. He is apparently the go-to guy for childless couples, who flock to the ashram in droves. The fee for fertility is reportedly Rs 1 lakh per couple.

They are made to stay in the ashram for about 10 days for a puja that the ashram says will ensure the birth of a child. Given the fact that the stream of childless couples doesn't run dry, Swamy's incantations seem to be in demand. Swamy reportedly is married and has one daughter who stays elsewhere.

An air of secrecy pervades the ashram; journalists are not allowed inside. Outside the ashram, nearly 50 'agents' work for Swamy, moving around the countryside touting message of their guru's 'powers'.

They are paid between `15,000 and `20,000 per month, depending on the number of persons they attract to the ashram. 'An image of Swamy was thus created in such a manner that the matter reached public representatives who started visiting the ashram.

As the word about his special powers spread, politicians and bureaucrats too started coming here,' a Chevuru resident said. The secrecy has spawned a mythical aura around Swamy, especially about his reported wealth.

Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat is one of Swamy's ardent followers, making secret visits to the ashram in Ongole without even informing the local government machinery of his visit.

Police sources say that Kamat takes the flight to Chennai from where he drives down to Ongole in a private vehicle. 'A host of VIPs visit the ashram for performing puja. Swamy is a tantrik and performs various types of rituals for them,' they say.

Many politicians in Hyderabad, who prefer to remain unnamed, say VIPs visit Transfer Baba for his 'tantrik powers'. The buzz is that VIPs donate huge amounts of money to the ashram.

Over the last couple of months, seven ministers in Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy's cabinet along with their bureaucratic retinue have visited the ashram.

Some said the pujas performed by Swamy 'yields results'. 'It didn't work for Yeddyurappa,' says a government official, pointing out that once any VIP visits a godman, others tend to follow suit.

Transfer Baba claims to be an expert in astrology and numerology and this is said to have increased his following over the years. Swamy's wealth is mostly invested in land.

He is reported to have recently acquired about 100 acres in Darsi village of Prakasam district at `25 lakh per acre. 'The rest of his landed assets are in Chennai and Bangalore,' sources say.

A local villager claims to know Swamy's modus operandi. Whenever a politician seeks an appointment, Swamy, through his devotees in high places, gathers a great deal of information about the visitor, including the problems faced on the personal or political front, he says.

When the politician arrives at the ashram, the tantrik lists out his problems even before the politician tells him about it. Suitably impressed, the supplicant is converted.

Ramavadhoota Swamy seems to be running a thriving spiritual establishment. His 'powers' may send followers into raptures, but those he dislikes stand to be transferred to other places.