In five days, a little known saint called Shobhan Sarkar has become the talk of the nation. And true to his aura, he refused to meet anybody for the second day, boarding a steamer on the Ganga and retiring to his ashram at Kanpur. The 60-year-old seer was apparently unhappy that the authorities did not deploy the Army to excavate the treasure in a day’s time as he was instructed in his “dream.” The delay, he thought, meant a chance to access buried treasure had been lost.
A visit to Sarkar’s ashram at Buxar, two kilometres from the site at Duandia Khera village, revealed what went into the making of the man or rather his myth. Born and brought up in the Maitha block of Kanpur district, Sarkar was inclined towards spirituality as a teenager and became a disciple of Gurudev Shesanganand Ji. “Nobody knows how much he studied but he is well-versed in English, Hindi, Urdu and Sanskrit. He has a keen eye for technology and can have a cogent discussion with engineers,” said Amar Singh, ashram manager and a PG in system management from Mumbai University. His close devotee, Omji, is equally savvy, interacting with the media and working on his laptop.
Around 10 devotees stay at his ashram and perform puja and hawans in front of the idols of lord Krishna and Hanuman. Women boarders are not allowed here. locals have blind faith in his vision after what they perceived as miracles and consider him Krishna’s messenger to deliver them from life’s ills. Vijay Bahadur Chauhan, a devotee and ashram inmate, said, “He is a God. Sixteen years ago, my wife was suffering from cancer. He advised us against surgery and cured her through his divine power.” Vibha Kumari, a 17-year-old student from Dodiya Khera, added, “Whatever he predicts happens. He has done so much for the village. So if the dead king has appeared in his dream and asked him to help dig out riches to help his people, it has to be true.”
Sarkar’s family visits him occasionally as he likes meeting disciples whenever he manages some time from his developmental activities, which have been his priority since the 80s. “He built eight inter-colleges, one polytechnic and has recently proposed a degree college in UP. He doesn’t charge fees at his charity schools. He renovated Chandika Devi’s temple at Buxar, built temples at Chobepur, Singhpur, Maitha, Sarsaul and Shubham, not only to inculcate divinity but good community living,” added Singh.
Sarkar is best known for his construction of the Buxar bridge during the Samajwadi Party’s regime in 2006. When the state government refused to take up the project, he reportedly sourced all building materials near the river. Red-faced local MlA Shivpal Singh visited the venue and finally the state government built it. Ever since, the do-gooder has gained more credibility as a seer.
Meanwhile, at the dig site near the Shiva temple and the Unnao fort, ASI officials, the SDM and the ADM kept strict vigil, preventing herding of visitors, mediamen and dismantling food stalls. Gram Pradhan Ajay Pal Singh decided to help the administration, setting up tents and getting water for officials. “The ground near the temple has always been used to organise annual wrestling matches ever since the time of Raja Rao Bux Singh. So we are quite used to handling numbers here,” he said.
Some villagers used the opportunity to trot out their complaints about the administration to a retreating media. Gaya Prasad, a vendor, said, “They have upset my food cart and forced me to leave. Yesterday there wasn’t any problem. We earned a good amount and my jalebis sold like hot cakes. With poor power supply, there’s hardly any economic activity that you can pursue here.” Some locals pleaded for the rightful restoration of the king’s legacy. “Nobody cares for the king who fought for his people. His statue in the middle of Chandika Devi Chowk has a broken sword. Ever since the treasure story has appeared, people are coming here, claiming lineage. But nobody is keen to repair his statue. We believe in Sarkar’s dream and want the government to concentrate on this village of 50 people. We don’t have a hospital, the closest government facility is 70 km away at Unnao,” said Munna Pande, a local resident.
Others magnified the theory that pots of gold were indeed buried beneath the fort. Said 70-year-old Shanti Saroop Pandey, “I have been hearing stories since my childhood. Some of my friends have even found gold coins among the ruins during the monsoon.” Some villagers want the Beithur Fort dug up as there are stories of hidden wealth around it too.
Unnao was in the news in 2005 when local media was abuzz with reports that a giant python had swallowed a village girl. later, she was caught with her lover. But as they say each story takes Unnao a little closer to national consciousness.