Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Godmen or fraudmen?' that was published in Newsband

Godmen or fraudmen?

Some godmen and religious cult leaders often have an exaggerated sense of their own importance: they sometimes end up believing what they tell their fanatic followers. It’s important to accelerate the eradication of the poverty and illiteracy to end this kind of Godman's evil empire. Corrupt and criminal politicians mafia and babus are obviously in connivance.

There should be special cell and website to enlighten the nation. Secularism doesn't mean ignoring the crimes of those who preach skewed versions of religion. Religious preachers should be judged on a spiritual scale, with cult figures and cheats scoring '0'. Governments should be led by people with impeccable integrity, not those who work towards scoring claps in their public performances.

God men is a self declared title by a mafia gang leader to deceive superstitious believers, ignorant, distress people who are looking for some help. Irony is that these anti social elements are backed by some intellectuals, learned high dignitaries, well placed personalities for reasons they themselves know. The well wishers of the society, educated, logical thinking intellectuals, keep a watch on these silent terrorists and give real enlightenment to public and save them from clutches of these destroyers.

This is 21st century and yet many are still superstitious. Not only common and uneducated or villagers follow these people who claim to be Godmen but even rich and well educated people follow them. Rich people also spend lot of money on these so-called Babas who claim themselves to be god. India has large section of population below poverty line, no one spends money on them. Some people follow Baba due to fear of God, they think god will punish them if they will not follow or pray any person who wear saffron colour cloths or claim himself to be God. There is need of an hour to change this thinking. There is need of an hour to change our ways of showing love for god. God does not reside in few people, God is in everyone.

Intellectuals from all groups should come together and devise some educating mechanism to make common man understand the fraudulent game time and again played by the god-persons. It is high time that such so called ashrams of these Godmen are periodically inspected by the police. These ashrams should declare what they actually possess in their premises.

Until we experience an Age of Enlightenment, India will continue to have men who pretend to be Godmen with special powers and answers to life's problems. One way to limit the influence such demagogues have would be to bring prosperity to the lives of the poor through strong economic and social development. In the meantime the media can and should do a much better job of exposing the hoax and deception these folks represent and help the ordinary folks in separating falsehoods from genuine facts.

Today, there are number of God men in public life. Many of them are controversial. Most of them have amassed huge wealth. They brainwash their followers, and make them fanatic. These poor people become so obsessed with god man that they do not shy away from bloodshed. Great writer Tolstoy wrote that people use religion as a tool to enhance their social status and power. Today there is need to shun the Baba culture prevailing in the country.

Only awareness and just order will free the common man from all sorts of blind faith and recluse.