People unhappy with my work troubling me, says preacher

Marathi ‘kirtankar’ (preacher) Nivrutti Maharaj Indurikar has said some people unhappy with his work for society and the Warkari community were trying to trouble him by demanding filing of cases over a recent remark.

The Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti (MANS), a voluntary organisation working to eradicate superstitious beliefs, last week sought a police case against Indurikar for remarks on timing of intercourse and gender of child which it claimed violated the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act.

During a sermon in a hamlet in Ahmednagar, the preacher had reportedly said intercourse by a couple on an even date would beget a male child, while on an odd date would result in the birth of a girl.

“If intercourse is done at an inauspicious time, the child that is born would bring a bad name to the family. If the timing (of intercourse) is missed, the quality of output (child) will be substandard,” he is heard saying in a video that went viral on social media.

Speaking on the issue on Sunday at a sermon in Ahsti tehsil in Ahmednagar, the preacher said, “I have been working for society and among the Warkari community for the past 30-35 years. Some people are unhappy with this and want to put me in trouble.”

He got support from BJP MLC Suresh Dhas who claimed the kirtankar was saying what was written in the treatise ‘Guru Charitra’ and it was wrong for the government to issue notices to him.

“We will support Nivrutti Maharaj Indurikar if any action is taken against him. What is the relationship between what he said and the PCPNDT Act? He said what is written in Guru Charitra and there is also evidence to back it,” Dhas said.

Meanwhile, the preacher got a rousing welcome in Bhosari in Pune on Monday with BJP’s Pimpri Chinchwad MLA Mahesh Landge driving him in a bullock cart amid cheers from the assembled crowd.

“Indurikar Maharaj through his teachings is carrying forward the glorious Warkari sampraday tradition. Thousands of youth, including me, have received inspiration from his teachings. We will hit the roads if anyone tries to malign his image,” Landge said.