Pune: Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s recent statement that Pathri village in Parbhani district was spiritual Guru Sai Baba’s actual birthplace has snowballed into a major controversy and pitted Shirdi and Pathri towns against each other. On Sunday the entire temple town of Shirdi in Ahmednagar district observed a total shutdown in protest against Thackeray’s remarks.
While the Sai Baba Temple remained open for devotees and tourists, in an unprecedented move Shirdi’s thriving marketplace and establishments downed their shutters for the first time in the history of the temple town.
In order to mitigate the inconvenience to thousands of visitors, provision for tea, breakfast and meals were made by the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust (SSST) and other social outfits in front of the Sai Mandir. Residents of more than 25 villages surrounding Shirdi, too joined in support of the bandh in the temple town.
The Shirdi shutdown was countered by events and demonstrations by residents of Pathri in a bid to ‘convince’ the locals of Shirdi that the Parbhani village was indeed the Sai Baba’s birthplace. The birthplace controversy saw a split in the rank and file of the ruling Shiv Sena, with the Sena MPs of Shirdi and Parbhani respectively batting for their regional claims.
While Shiv Sena MP from Shirdi, Sadashiv Lokhande, participated in a protest march in the town, Sena MP from Parbhani, Sanjay Jadhav, countered the claims of Shirdi’s Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust (SSST) by stating that the Sri Sai Janmasthan Temple Trust (SSJTT) in Parbhani had 29 proofs that Pathri was indeed the saint’s birthplace.
“I am a Sai bhakt (devotee) first and then an MP… Sai Baba came to Shirdi when he was 16 years of age. The great man always transcended caste and religion and never revealed his birthplace or caste. I will be speaking to the Chief Minister tonight and will be leading a delegation from Shirdi to meet him on January 20, Monday,” said Lokhande. At the same time, he stressed that neither he nor anybody else in Shirdi were opposed to Pathri’s development.
“The Chief Minister has announced a grant of Rs.100 crore for Pathri’s development… While I am all for that, the State government ought not to say that the Parbhani village was Sai Baba’s birthplace,” said Lokhande, while promising that devotees would not be inconvenienced during the indefinite shutdown.
In response to the locals and temple trust authorities of Shirdi, their counterparts in Parbhani have claimed that the former was fearing that the development of Pathri as announced by Thackeray would have a detrimental effect on Shirdi’s thriving economy.
“This is a silly controversy…Every time, we have seen leaders from western Maharashtra play politics over every issue the moment they sense any threat to their status quo. But this time, we have solid proof in the form of municipal records and other sources that Pathri is indeed the Sai Baba’s birthplace. The folks at Shirdi are going to have to accept the truth…Why are they getting worried about their existence if their consciences are clear?” said Jadhav, who participated in the counter-demonstrations in Pathri.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Babajani Durrani, a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Council (MLC), and a trustee of the Sri Sai Janmasthan Temple in Parbhani, accused the SSST in Shirdi of deliberately doing away with proofs which showed Pathri to be the saint’s actual place of birth.
“Marathwada is the birthplace of a number of saints including Dnyaneshwar. There should be no question of controversy on this issue of Sai Baba’s birth… In fact, a 1972 biography of Sai Baba published by the Shirdi Sansthan mentions Pathri to be his place of birth. It seems they are worried that if Pathri is developed, Shirdi will not attract the same number of footfalls,” he said.
In Parbhani, a bhajan demonstration as observed in front of the District Collectorate, with locals conducting ‘Sai Jaagar’ programmes in a bid to ‘awaken’ their counterparts in Shirdi to the truth about the saint’s real birthplace.
Ironically, even as 30-odd villages observed a total shutdown, it was business as usual in Loni village, the hometown of ex-Congress-turned-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, one of the most vociferous proponents of the bandh.
Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar urged for both opposing parties to take a conciliatory approach to resolve the impasse, while remarking that the State government was taking necessary steps so that the indefinite shutdown would be called off soon.
“The Chief Minister has called for a meeting on January 20, Monday in which both contending parties will be presenting their respective cases. Till that time, it is pointless to hurt anyone’s sentiments without any reason,” said Pawar.
