By Gurnam Singh | Opinion |
A cult leader who allegedly groomed and raped four female devotees over three decades has failed in an attempt to have this case thrown out. Rajinder Kalia, 65, has been accused at the High Court of exerting ‘undue influence’ on worshippers as young as four at the Baba Balak Nath temple in Bell Green, in Coventry, UK (see here).
Practising an obscure branch of Hinduism, Kalia allegedly indoctrinated his devotees to believe he was “an incarnation of God and or the divine” and to see him as “all-powerful, all-seeing and all-knowing”. He had also claimed “to be divine, to have a direct link to and regularly to speak with God or manifestations of God”. Kalia is also accused of instructing his followers to launch an ‘onslaught of harassment’ against any members of the temple who spoke out against him.
This is not the first, and certainly not the last cases of alleged abuse by a so called Godman. However, in the midst of this worrying by case, it is also right to celebrate the judgement made by the court. Why? Because such cases rarely reach the courts. But sadly this case is but the tip of a very big iceberg.
Tragically and shamefully, whilst some of our Gurdwaras, Temples, Mandhirs, Mosques, and Churches do some good work, some of the time, they have also become magnates for criminal ‘God men’, who prey on vulnerable and desperate people, especially women, children, and young people. Whilst most of the charlatans travel from overseas, mostly from India and Pakistan and the Arab countries, there is also a growing number of UK-born ‘God men’, both young and old.
Unless and until the various ‘places of worship’ are subjected to proper governance, i.e. that they are controlled by the congregation through some form of democratic and legal accountability, I am afraid these kinds of cases are likely to increase.
Temples, like the one in this case in Coventry, from the outside, with their beautiful domes and lights, appear to be the closest one might get to heaven in Earth, but in many cases the decoration, ritual, pomp and ceremony is a clever ploy to cover up horrendous practices.
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In such case, because of the utter embarrassment and shame that the victims feel, more often than not the abusers get away without facing any justice. But in some senses we, the silent majority of ‘good people’, are also culpable in our failure to speak out against against such abuse and confront the abusers, who operate freely amongst the community.
Though they can come in all shapes, sizes and guises, often fake Godman are adorned with all kinds of religious attire. Whatever their appearance, one should never never accept or trust a ‘Godman’, especially a stranger until and unless you are certain of their intentions and credentials.
In any other walk of life, whether it is arranging child care, or even buying a house, we first establish the credential of those we are dealing with and we will often consult lawyers and other agencies. But when it comes to religion, somehow we feel it is wrong to ask question, to doubt and be cautious. It is as if we have become conditioned to give blind respect to those who claim that God is on their side!! What a perfect opportunity for a budding rapist, simply present yourself as a man of God, invest in some fancy attire, and the doors will be wide open!
So my advise to anybody that is prepared to listen is simple, treat any person who claims to be able to reach into your soul and/or to perform miracle acts as a charlatan and potential abuser. And for certain DO NOT allow yourself to be with them in a private setting for obvious reasons; this is where they almost always make their move and do their dirty work.
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And for those who sadly fall prey to these evil ’Godmen’, you should try to build up your evidence and not hesitate to involve the law enforcement agencies. But I would definitely warn against approaching so called ‘community leaders’ and committee members, that is unless they have a good track record in such cases. Why? Because often the community leaders may be afraid of the consequences and/or vested interests, which can range from family aend community ‘obligations’ to financial interests. And one should not discount the possibility that they may well be directly involved in such abuse rings.
Ultimately the challenge is for us all, which means we need to be proactive, and especially we need to educate and empower women and children in particular to both recognise and resist the men. But, because these evil doers are almost always men, we men must accept our collective complicity in allowing what is essentially misogyny (hatred of women) and systemic abuse to become normalised. And that means speaking up and speaking out! We need to declare war, ‘dharma judh’, jihad’ or whatever else one chooses to call against these Godmen.
Gurnam Singh is an academic activist dedicated to human rights, liberty, equality, social and environmental justice. He is an Associate Professor of Sociology at University of Warwick, UK. He can be contacted at Gurnam.singh.1@warwick.ac.uk
* This is the opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of Asia Samachar.
RELATED STORY:
Miracles and Godmen (Asia Samachar, 31 July 2020)
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