News Analysis India

Tag: Mahant Narendra Giri death case

  • Mahant suicide case: CBI begins probe, war of succession likely to intensify at Baghambari Muthh

    Express News Service

    LUCKNOW:  The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) commenced the probe into the alleged suicide case of Mahant Narendra Giri by filing an FIR on Friday after taking over the case from Prayagraj police on Thursday.

    Mahant Narendra Giri, president, Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP), was found dead in mysterious circumstances at Shri Baghambari Muthh on Monday evening.

    While three persons, including late Manaht’s disciple Anand Giri, head priest of Bade Hanumanji temple Adya Tiwari and Tiwari’s son Sandip have already been arrested and sent to 14-day judicial custody in connection with late seer’s alleged suicide, the preliminary autopsy report revealed that the Mahant died of asphyxia due to hanging.

    All the three accused were arrested by the Prayagraj police on Tuesday following the suicide note recovered from the room where the body of the Mahant was found hanging. In the suicide note, the late Mahant had held all the three responsible for pushing him towards committing suicide.

    The Mahant had also named Mahant Balbir Giri as his successor in the alleged suicide note.

    The state government had recommended a CBI probe into the case on late Wednesday night and the officials of the central probe agency lodged the FIR on Friday.

    ALSO READ | Centre approves CBI probe into death of Mahant Narendra Giri

    Meanwhile, the war of succession in Shri Muthh Baghmbari Gaddi is likely to intensify as three wills done at different times by late Mahant Narendra Giri have surfaced.

    On the contrary, the Niranjani Akhara, to which the late seer belonged, and the ABAP both have rejected the suicide theory and the suicide note as well. They even postponed the appointment of Mahant’s successor to September 25.

    As per the highly informed sources, Mahant Narendra Giri had done three wills in the capacity of the head of Shri Muthh Baghambari Gaddi.

    Mahant’s advocate Rishishankar Dwivedi, who had got all the three wills registered, said that the first will was done by the late Mahant on January 7, 2010. In this will, Mahant Narendra Giri had mentioned Balbir Giri as his successor.

    Cancelling the first will, the second will was done by the Mahant on August 29, 2011. “In the second will, Mahantji replaced the name of his successor with his disciple Anand Giri. Anand Giri was supposed to be very close to Mahant Narendra Giri at that time,” said Dwivedi.

    However, cancelling both the prior wills, the late Mahant made his third will on June 4, 2020, in which he again nominated Mahant Balbir Giri as his successor, said advocate Dwivedi.

    According to the lawyer, the appointment of successor at Shri Muthh Baghamabri Gaddi is always done on the basis of the will left by the preceding head. “Even Mahant Narendra Giri was appointed the head of Baghambari Gaddi on the basis of the will left behind by his predecessor,” said Dwivedi.

    As a result of the emergence of the third will, now the Niranjani Akhara and ABAP will have a limited say in the appointment of the successor of the late Mahant Narendra Giri.

  • Mahant Narendra Giri death case: Key accused Anand Giri claims threat to life, seeks security

    Express News Service

    LUCKNOW: As the team of CBI officials reached Prayagraj to take over the probe into the death of Mahant Narendra Giri, president of Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad, in mysterious circumstances, main accused Anand Giri has expressed threat to his life seeking protection.

    Anand Giri along with Adya Tiwari, head priest of bade Hanumanji temple in Prayagraj, was sent to 14-day judicial custody at Naini jail of Prayagraj on Wednesday.

    Claiming a threat to his life, Anand Giri submitted an application in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate through his lawyer on Thursday claiming a threat to his life seeking adequate security.

    Substantiating the threat perception, Anand Giri’s lawyer also claimed in the application that his client was attacked by a few persons on the court premises on Wednesday.

    However, acting on Anand Giri’s application, CJM Harendra Kumar issued directives to the Naini Jail superintendent to provide security to Anand Giri as per the jail manual and other laws.

    The CJM further said that Anand Giri would be produced at the next hearing through video conferencing.

    ALSO READ | Mahant Narendra Giri death case: Akhara politics intensifies as saints’ body rejects suicide theory

    The jail authorities had earlier claimed that both Anand Giri and Adya Tiwari were kept under high security in separate barracks away from other inmates. The barracks of both the accused are equipped with CCTV cameras.

    Anand Giri is the main accused in the mysterious death case of the Mahant who had mentioned his name along with Adya Tiwari and his son Sandip Tiwari in the alleged suicide note claiming that they had pushed him towards committing suicide.

    Adya Tiwari’s son Sandip is also lodged in the same jail in 14-day judicial custody in connection with the case.

    Mahant Narendra Giri was found dead in mysterious circumstances when his body was spotted hanging from a ceiling fan and a suicide note was recovered from the spot at his Baghambari Gaddi Muthh on Monday evening. In the note, the late seer had allegedly accused Anand Giri, Adya Tiwari, and Sandip of harassing him mentally and threatening him to malign his image through a morphed photo.

    Meanwhile, a video purportedly shot after the death of the Mahant had gone viral on social media on Thursday showing the late seer lying lifeless on the floor of the room where his body was found hanging.

    The cops are shown questioning the disciples who took the body down cutting the nylon rope with which the seer had allegedly committed suicide.

  • Mahant Narendra Giri death case: Akhara politics intensifies as saints’ body rejects suicide theory

    Express News Service

    LUCKNOW: The demise of Mahant Narendra Giri has intensified Akhara politics with Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP) and Nirajani Akhara rejecting the suicide theory and the note allegedly written by the late seer.

    Suspecting foul play, they demanded a probe by an HC judge.

    Notably, Mahant Narendra Giri was the president of ABAP, the apex body of 13 Akharas across the country while originally belonging to Niranjani Akhara. While interacting with the media persons in Prayagraj, the Akhara Parishad said that it had postponed the appointment of Mahant Narendra Giri’s successor at Baghambari Gaddi Muthh in Prayagraj.

    However, the late seer had written in his alleged suicide note that Mahant Balbir Giri should be nominated as his successor to head the Muthh after his death. Refusing the appointment of  Balbir Giri as the successor of the late seer, ABAP said that the letter is was fake and the appointment of his successor would be made later by the Parishad.

    It claimed that Parishad had launched its own probe into the death of Mahant Narendra Giri and it would come out with its findings only after September 25.

    ALSO READ | Mahant Narendra Giri death case: Late seer’s Niranjani Akhara owns assets running into crores

    “After September 25, when the 16–day rituals of Mahant Narendra Giriji Maharaj will conclude, the panch parmeshwar (the body making appointments) of Parishad will decide on his successor,” said Mahant Hari Giri, secretary, ABAP.

    Rejecting the suicide note, Hari Giri said that when the note was fake, how could Balbir Giri be appointed as Maharaji’s (Mahant Narendra Giri) successor. “We have postponed the meeting of panch parmeshawar,” he said.

    Meanwhile, Niranjani Akhara Mahant Ravindra Puri also claimed on Wednesday that the suicide letter was not written by Mahant Narendra Giri who was found hanging at the Baghambari Muthh. The Niranjani Akhara seers said that the Mahant was a person of grit and that he could not commit suicide.

    Both Ravindra Puri, secretary of Niranjani Akhara and Mahamandaleshwar Koshalanand, Peethaddheshwar (head) of Nirajani Akhara called for a probe to prove its veracity.

    The Niranjani Akhara seers claimed that Mahant Narendra Giri did not know how to write. “He could only sign,” said Koshalanand adding: “It seems that the note was written by a person technically and legally very sound.”

    Claiming that the name of successor was not written correctly on the note, Ravindra Puri said that Balbir’s surname was Puri and not Giri. “In the suicide letter, it is written Giri, Narendra Giri cannot make such a mistake,” he added.