Uttarakhand Launches Operation Kalnemi To Nab Fake Spiritualists, 127 Held So Far

Dehradun: Uttarakhand Police have launched a crackdown on fake spiritual healers and mendicants on the directions of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. The drive has been named ‘Operation Kalnemi’.

So far police have detained or arrested 127 people in Dehradun, Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar districts for duping people in the guise of seers.

In last two days, 61 "fake seers" were arrested in Dehradun district of whom, 17 were arrested from Rishikesh alone, officials said. A Bangladeshi citizen was arrested in the Sahaspur area of the district who was allegedly living as a seer in disguise, they added.

An accused, identified as Rakam, a resident of Tangail district near Dhaka in Bangladesh, had reached Dehradun about seven months ago, police said.

Giving a count of the number of arrests made in the past two days, Dehradun Senior Superintendent of Police Ajay Singh said on Saturday, 23 people were arrested from various places in the district, while on Friday, 38 such alleged fake seers were nabbed.

Udham Singh Nagar Senior Superintendent of Police Manikant Mishra said 66 suspected fake sadhus have been detained from various areas of the district.

Police have been tracking down the fake Babas not only in the residential colonies but also the main markets and the peripheries of the towns and cities.

These saffron clad Babas are allegedly involved in cheating people in the name of religion. Anti social elements donning a garb associated with religion is a known practice as it becomes difficult to identify such people.

According to Police officials 48 such persons have been nabbed by the Police in the state capital of Dehradun in a single day. These people had either hidden their identity or had come from other states to cheat the people.

Apart from Dehradun, 45 such elements have been nabbed from Haridwar and another 66 in Udham Singh Nagar.

Sources said that these persons are being interrogated and those found genuine spiritualists are not facing any action but those found to be fraud are facing action under Section 170 of Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS). Those being arrested are produced before the Magistrate.

Dehradun’s Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ajay Singh said, “We are trying to ascertain whether people from other states are coming to carry out a reconnaissance for committing crime in the future. We are carrying out their verification.”

He disclosed that among those arrested is a Bangladeshi national as well. It is also being ascertained whether these persons have a history of crime in other states as well.

Advocate Ganesh Purohit disclosed that Section 170 of BNS is applied against people deceiving others through allurement or lies. He said, “It is not a very stringent provision and provides for bail without any problem.”

The drive is being carried out in the name of mythological character Kalnemi who was the maternal uncle of Ravana and was known for his magical powers and cunningness. Ravana had sent him to stop Hanuman from bringing Sanjeevani Booti to save Lakshman. Kalnemi had changed into a saint and had tried to divert Hanuman’s attention but his designs were exposed and he was eventually killed.

Now it is up to the courts to decide whether they are to be granted bail or not.

(With PTI inputs)

Read More

1. Uttarakhand Launches Drive Against Impostor-Sadhus, 25 Intercepted, Including a Bangladeshi
2. Drive Against Impostor-Sadhus Extended From Dehradun To Haridwar