With the family members of the hospitalized spiritual preacher Sri Satya Sai Baba and members of the Satya Sai Central Trust being at loggerheads to take control of the Sai Kingdom worth more than Rs.40, 000 Cr, the state government is mulling to take over the Trust to run its activities without any interruption.
While there is no improvement in the health condition of the Baba even after his 10th day in hospital, the state government has deputed a five member team of bureaucrats and medical experts to Puttaparthi to find out considering the take over of the affairs of the Satya Sai Central Trust.
The five-member team, consisting of principal secretary, finance, L V Subramanyam, principal secretary, health, P V Ramesh, director of medical education Dr Raghu Raju, Osmania General Hospital (OGH) cardiologist Dr Laxman Rao and OGH general physician Dr Bhanu Prasad had reached Puttaparthi late Tuesday night and began its work.
While the doctors will asses the actual health condition of Satya Saibaba, others will interact with the trust members to find out the details of the Trust that runs several educational and social service activities.
The Income Tax department has informed the state government that the value of the properties being managed by the Trust is more than Rs 40,000 Cr. All donations to the trust receive complete tax exemption. The trust also receives hundreds of crores of rupees annually towards donations from foreign individuals.
The bureaucrats will assess if there is any proper accounting system to the large amounts of donations being received by the Trust from individuals in India and abroad and examine the need of the Trust to be taken over by the Government.
The Satya Sai Central Trust runs the affairs of the university complex, two specialty hospitals at Puttaparthi and Bangalore, a world religious museum Chaitanya Jyoti, a planetarium, a railway station, a hill-view stadium, a music college, an administrative building, an airport, an indoor sports stadium and a sports complex in Puttaparthi.
Besides, there are an estimated 1,200 Satya Sai Baba Centers in over 180 countries running schools, hospitals and cultural activities.
