Responses to International Herald Tribune

As a dedicated follower of Sathya Sai Baba for nearly two decades - a ceaseless worker in his Organisation for that long, both as founder member of the Sai Org. in Norway in 1983 and the national leader for over 15 years, I am writing to you with some crucial information. I am a retired university lecturer in philosophy (The University of Oslo) and former researcher in social science at the Institute for Social Research, Oslo. I am still a British citizen and am the author of a book sold very widely within the Sai movement relating my many extraordinary experiences etc. in connection with Sai Baba. It is entitled "Source of the Dream, - My Way to Sathya Sai Baba" (1994, Bangalore/1998 USA/2000 and 2002, Puttaparthi). Incidentally, my wife and I have been in India with Sai Baba nine times since 1984, amounting to well over one year in all, and have had five private interviews with him. We have also donated much money to the Central Trust, which we have since learned from insider sources is subject to waste and embezzlement as regular features, despite Sai Baba’s repeated dishonest denials of the facts.

I eventually came to learn some devastating facts from one of Sai Baba's very closest confidants in the 1980s and 1990s, the outstanding and upright gentleman, ex-Editor-in-Chief of the Indian Express group of newspapers, V.K. Narasimhan (who died in March 2000). He informed me how, on the direct initiative of Sai Baba's younger brother, Janaki Ramiah, and other officials of the ashram and Central Trust, the police were blackmailed into executing in cold blood in Sai Baba's own rooms, four intruders who had killed two of his attendants. These intruders could easily have been captured without murdering them. Sai Baba was nearby throughout the hours that all this went on, and (a virtual dictator within his ashram) did not lift a finger to stop what he most certainly knew to be taking place. The account VKN gave me in confidence (and a lowered voice) I cannot possibly doubt as I knew him so long and so well. It is backed up fully by my extensive investigations of the entire matter. VKN informed me of a discussion to which he was witness between Janaki Ramiah and the Home Minister of India then (a Sai Baba devotee) who congratulated the younger brother on his action in the matter whereupon they laughed together over the words 'Dead men tell no tales.' I swear by all that is holy that I am reporting this as it was told me. A full account of my very close friendship with V.K. Narasimhan and all he told me in hundreds of hours of private conversation through the dozen years I knew him can be read at http://home.no.net/anir/Sai/enigma/VKN1.htm

Years after this, while I had tried to rationalise away these brutal realities, I became aware of the allegations of sexual abuse by Sai Baba. These I eventually began to investigate and - after two years of constant daily work at this - have become utterly convinced of the truth of many of these allegations to, having also seen, heard and known persons who were victims of sexual abuse by Sai Baba and others who had much other powerful supporting evidence. A number of persons have also written to me in strict confidence, which they would not do to persons who are still devotees and are unwilling - for a host of personal but specious reasons - to face the facts, which are an inalienable part of truth (not its opposite, as Sai Baba says and followers comfort themselves).

In western political terms, Sai Baba's activities in India would be seen as constituting a totalitarian cult operating freely as a state within the state, even though it is condoned by the rightist Prime Minister Vajpayee and High Court judges who all worship Sai Baba. This is nothing short of a national disgrace to India, though a few of its citizens there are risking all to expose this personality cult with its outwardly charming, good and holy, but privately nefarious, figurehead... Sai Baba.

I would urgently draw your attention to the Public Petition for Official Investigations of Sathya Sai Baba and His Worldwide Organization (please see http://www.petitiononline.com/saibaba). The petition now has ca. 250 bona fide signatures, a majority of which are by former followers of Sai Baba - often for up to 30 years - who have learned many indisputable facts about him which show him to be guilty of fraud and other very serious crimes.

Since Sai Baba is very firmly in the political arena, trying to gain as much power and money and attract as many leaders in society as possible etc., we who formed the JuST group for the purpose of bringing out the truth aim to see that this issue will get national coverage in the media and in the politics of those countries in ways similar to the successes in stopping Sai Baba Colleges in Denmark (Arresødal, Fredriksborg) and in the USA (Hartford, Conn.) so as to protect youth from possible visits to sexual abuse by Sai Baba and from possible visiting Indian alumni of Sai Baba's colleges who have been abused by him and so have in some cases reportedly become frequent abusers of students.

Having researched into Sai Baba's teachings for 20 years and written much about them, as well as indexing every published word of his, I would further draw your attention to the fact that this teaching is far from being 'universal' , for it is very heavily biased towards the Hindu faith in the avatar, against basic tenets of Christianity and Islam, while Sai Baba himself exhibits enormous ignorance of other religions, as can be seen on various websites analysing his discourses (such as http://bdsteel.tripod.com/index.html ) and on my extensive website concerning all aspects of Sai Baba and his works (http://home.no.net/anir/Sai/enigma) The unavoidable conclusion of my 20 years of practice, observation and study is that the words of Sai Baba clash mutually on many vital issues, and his actions are increasingly and most seriously at odds with his teachings. This is nothing less than sheer deceit!

I trust that these matters will be studied and righted in the interests of non-bias and objectivity. Thanking you in advance for your understanding and action to right this wrong,

I am,

yours sincerely, Robert Priddy (Oslo, Norway)