Sai Baba coffin: Advance booking done in Bangalore?

Puttaparthi, Apr 28: It seems that the godman and spiritual guru, Sai Baba elicits more controversy in death than the time he was alive. After rumours of his succession and the riches of the trust hogged the limelight, there is some unholy hearsay doing the rounds. There are reports that a freezer box in which Baba's body was kept post-death was ordered as early as Apr 4.

The recent controversy has opened the lid to a fresh controversy on the exact date of the Baba's death. As per the medical bulletin that was given out by the hospital in which Baba was admitted, his condition took to the worse only on Apr 15. He was admitted to hospital on Mar 28.

The controversy came to light when the company making the freezer boxes claimed that the box was ordered on Apr 4. The order was apparently placed by Rajendranath Reddy from Bangalore to the Malleswaram (Bangalore) branch of the Coimbatore-based company, Kumar and Co. International that makes such boxes.

Made at a cost of Rs 1.07 lakh, the glass freezer was delivered on time too. A staff in the company said, “The box was transported from Coimbatore to Ulsoor in Bangalore on April 4 and reached Puttaparthi on April 5."

The owner of Kumar and Co. International, Lakshmi feigned innocence in the latest controversy and said, “We did not know it was meant for Sai Baba". She also added that after inquiring with Rajendranath through one of her colleagues, he asked her not to mention the fact to anyone.

One of the trust members, S S Naganand claimed that the freezer box was ordered by the Baba's family, another prominent member P N Bhagwati gave a contrasting claim and said, “I am not aware when the freezer box was ordered or brought to Puttaparthi. I also have no information as to who ordered it and when." The Anantapur district collector B Janardhan Reddy has also refused having any knowledge on the freezer box.

OneIndia News