KATHMANDU: Controversial ‘ascetic’ Ram Bahadur Bomjan who claims himself a harbinger of peace, enlightened and ‘Little Buddha’ is in the police list for his alleged involvement in the criminal activities since long.
Bomjan is accused of kidnapping, raping, and making children disappear.
Bomjan, who claims himself as the pioneer of ‘Bodhimarga Darshan Maitri Dharma’, is in the most-hunted list of Nepal Police.
The police are trying to ensnare him for the last 6 months. Hoping to trap him, the police raided his ‘ashram’ three times, but in vain.
A team consisting the members from Central Intelligence Bureau of Nepal Police and District Police Office Sindhuli equipped with arms and the trained dogs raided the Sindhuli-based shelter of Bomjan on July 18.
According to DIG Sahakul Thapa, the Chief of CIB, the police had reached there acting on a tip-off and with evidence that Bomjan was in the Sindhuli based Ashram. However, police returned empty-handed.
Prior to this CIB, the District Police Office Sindhuli had raided Bomjan’s Sindhuli shelter on February 7, 2020.
Police had raided one month before that as well.
Where is Bomjan?
After getting clues that Bomjan is in his shelter in the dense forest of Kamalamai-9, Pahire, Sindhuli, police raided the site on June 18. However, but for his disciples, none came to police hands.
The disciples informed the police that he was in penance in an underground cave.
“When asked the disciples found in the place informed that Bomjan has gone for under-ground meditation in some unknown place and would continue the meditation for two more years,” DIG Thapa said.
However, the police are skeptical about such claims and say that Bomjan could not be such long penance as he is found to be using his cell phones quite often and no man in penance uses the phone.
The investigation officials of the police believe that he could be taking shelter near his main residence in the dense forest of Sindhuli. The police have continued their search on the same ground.
Rape and murder allegations against the ‘ascetic’
According to the police sources, Bomjan is alleged to have raped an under-aged girl.
According to CIB Chief Thapa, the rape victim child, who turned 18 a few days back, is under police security. He added that she filed the case against Bomjan once she turned 18.
Criminal Code Act 2017 hails that provided a rape victim is underaged, she can sue the tormentor within 1 year after she turns 18.
Based on the same provision, Sarlahi District Court issued an arrest warrant against Bomjan on February 6. Once the warrant is issued against a person, the police have to arrest the alleged. However, Bomjan has managed to escape time and again.
While filing the case against him, Sarlahi District Attorney’s office has sought a 14-year-imprisonment on Bomjan in the charge-sheet against him.
The district attorney’s office filed the charge-sheet against Bomjan on rape case on July 2.
There are more allegations like murder and forced disappearance against Bomjan.
According to DIG Thapa, there are allegations of causing forced disappearance of nuns namely Nuwakot’s Chinimaya Tamang, Makawanpur’s Phul Maya Rumba and Sarlahi’s Rita Bot against ‘ascetic’ Bomjan.
Police offices of three district Makawanpur, Nuwakot and Bara have got forced disappearance cases filed against Bomjan between 2012-2015
Vijaya Rumba, Phul Maya Rumba’s brother, registered a case at District Police Office Makawanpur seeking the police help to search his sister who got disappeared from Bomjan’s Sindhupalchowk Ashram since 2014.
Chini Maya Tamang of Meghan Rural Municipality, Nuwakot who left home to rejoin Bomjan’s Ashram in 2012 is disappeared as well.
Phul Maya alias Chunma and Chini Maya alias Karma were the nuns at Bomjan’s religious shelter.
Ganga Maya Tamang, Chini Maya’s sister, has filed an application seeking police help for the search of her missing sister. In addition to these two, Sanch Lal Waiba, Makawanpur and Suresh Ale Magar Bara are also in the list of people who are in the police list of the people who disappeared from Bomjan’s ashram.
Ram Bahadur Bomjan has got his birth certificate as Dharma Sangh Bomjan from Ratanpuri Rural Municipality, Bara. Although Bomjan’s parents had got his birth certificate on April 21, 1995, Bomjan got his fake birth certificate from Rattanpuri Rural Municipality Office on April 25, 2012.
In addition to these, there are some more allegations like holding foreign girls hostage, harassment, clearing the forest and encroaching forest against Bomjan.
“To us, Bamjan is an absconding accused. There is a rape case against him,” CIB Chief Thapa said, “we are searching him, if we get more allegations against him, we will bring them also under investigation.”
Former DIG Hemanta Malla who had also handled CIB and Special Bureau’s command of Police thinks such problems occur when people go closer regarding such people as ‘guru’ the holy teacher.
“Many people blindly trust a person who claims to be holy guru, and the corrupt individuals take advantage of the gullibility of ordinary people,” Former DIG Malla said to Khabarhub, “ prevalent blind belief towards the holy teacher and superstition are responsible for such situations.”
Who is Bomjan
As per the available records, Ram Bahadur Bomjan was born in Ratanpuri-5 Bungjor in 1990. His father and mother are farmers. He is the third child in a family of 5 children.
Bomjan got sudden fame when an announcement about the end of 6-year-long fast and penance that started on May 15, 2005.
Bomjan was said to have formally come out of his fast and penance on May 16, 2011. With various myths and news, he was eulogized as ‘Little Buddha’ by some people.
Although his followers claimed that he had visited various Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India, some people said that he actually worked in a rice mill in Pokhara and confined himself at home as he got badly injured while working in the mill. This news had made people skeptical about his character.
After that, he was drawn to another controversy for 7 years as people claimed he held public and family members hostage and tortured them badly.
Interestingly, immediately after some controversy in a shelter, he is said to be shifting to the next shelter. His followers and family members claim Bomjan has got a unique divine power.
Where are his shelters/ashram?
Bomjan had started his penance from Bara’s Halkhoria forest. Lately, he has been successful in making various ashrams in different parts of the country.
According to CIB Chief Thapa, in addition to Bara, Bomjan’s shelters are in Sindhupalchowk, Sarlahi, Lamjung, Nuwakot and Makawanpur districts.
900 hectares of Halkhoriya’s forest area was under Bamjan’s encroachment for 6 years till June 2012. Blaming the locals disturbed the penance by entering the restricted area, Bomjan and his followers were said to have physically assaulted the locals.
Without taking formal consent from the authority and the locals Bomjan had set up more than a dozen constructions clearing the forest area.
The local administration had evacuated the area after getting allegations of clearance of the forest, the encroachment of land, and assaulting the locals against him.
Similarly, there is a spacious ashram area spread in 6.43 hectares in Kamalamai-9 Pahire, Sindhuli occupied under ‘Bodhimarga Darshan Maitri Dharma’. ‘Ram Bahadur Bamjan Ashram’ occupies 4.49 hectares of land.
The constructions there occupy the areas beyond their real ownership. These instructions have encroached the land of Chundevi and the Dakshinkali Community forest. The followers of Bodhimarga are offering the preachings over there.
The police do not have a clear idea in which ashram Bomjan lives.
“We are vigilant on all ashrams and potential shelters Bomjan could be using as shelters for hiding,” DIG Thapa said, “ the police have mobilized the trained dogs used for the disaster management as well.”
The dogs used in disaster management help in finding out the dead bodies buried under the debris.
Despite the big list of unholy and evil scams related to ‘ascetic’ Ram Bahadur Bomjan, the police have not nabbed him yet.
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