by Barry Pittard
Friday, Dec. 29, 2006 at 9:04 PM
bpittard@optusnet.com.au Australia
One of Britain's top newspapers, The Guardian, has demonstrated ties between Duke of Edinburgh Awards personnel and Sathya Sai Baba (pron. satya si bubba), India's most famous and powerful guru.
After years of almost total Indian media silence on news adverse to Sathya Sai Baba, several services have run the Indo-Asian News Service report on The Guardian (UK) article of the November 3, 2006, 'The Indian living god, the paedophilia claims and the Duke of Edinburgh awards'. See, http://www.guardian.co.uk/india/story/0,,1939405,00.html
This breakthrough of coverage may indicate that mounting pressures on Sai Baba and his powerful and wealthy worldwide organisation can no longer be held back, including in India, where hitherto, with the exception of India Today (Dec. 4, 2000), the media has failed to investigate pedophilia and other allegations against Sathya Sai Baba.
There have been critical investigations of Sai Baba by the UNESCO, The US State Department, BBC, Times of London, Telegraph, The Guardian, and leading media in the European Union, Scandinavia, Canada, and Australia. The BBC's 'The Secret Swami' (2004) and DR's 'Seduced by Sai Baba' (by Denmark's national broadcaster, 2002) have been seen by millions in various countries. Sai Baba and his defenders claim that this coverage is mere sensationalism.
Former devotees (among them, prominent ex-leaders) say that a vast cover-up has occurred, including circumstances relating to police killings in Sai Baba's bedroom on June 6, 1993. His ex-followers say that, thwarted by Indian media and political patronage of Sai Baba and his multi-billion empire, they have turned to non-Indian media to expose the facts.
www.exbaba.com