A year has passed to the arrest of fake godman Srimad Sarathi, who was nabbed by the CID (Crime Branch) on August 7, 2015 on charges of sexual exploitation, cheating and land scam.
He was embroiled in a controversy after a private TV channel aired some photo clips and footages of Sarathi staying in a star hotel at Hyderabad with a girl sporting modern clothes and taking non-vegetarian meals and liquor.
locals here on Sunday burnt the effigy of Sarathi in front of his ashram at Barimula. Though the temple and his ashram still exist at the Barimula ashram, but not a single devotee is coming to them since Sarathi was arrested. Only some outsiders or picnickers are coming to have a glimpse of the Ashram out of curiosity.
The locals stated that they are now living in peace since the goons of Sarathi are no longer active. There is not any traffic problem due the crowd assembling near the ashram and their vehicles being parked there. Meanwhile, in the last one year some of smalltime vendors of the locality have been badly affected to earn their livelihood. Earlier, when Sarathi was in his ashram, they used to do a brisk business. The locals alleged that the district administration has failed to retrieve land encroached by the Sarathi Ashram.