Nirmal Baba

Nirmal Baba is best known for his televised Samagams (congregations), The Third Eye of Nirmal Baba, which have attracted audiences of thousands seeking spiritual guidance and faith healing.[2] The Samagams began gaining popularity in 2011 and by 2012 they'd been broadcast on over 30 major television channels and Nirmal Baba had amassed an online following of around 500,000.[1]

He often gives seemingly very simple solutions to people looking for guidance: his advice has included stocking fridges with cold drinks, eating pani poori, giving food to the poor and buying a new briefcase.[2][3]

One of his supporters (a professor of psychology at Delhi University), has said that she believed "he had some sort of extra-sensory perception" and "he was performing a positive mental health role".[2]

As well as serval followers, Nirmal Baba has many detractors who have criticised the high ticket price of his events and accused him of taking advantage of troubled followers, paying audience shills to ask prearranged questions, and offering "absurd or illogical solutions" to his disciples. And in 2017 the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (All India Akhara Council) called for him to be boycotted, amongst a list of "fake Babas".[4] Nirmal Baba has rebuffed these claims stating "There are many groups that do not like that I have reached the heights I have achieved," and that "some vested interests then started a campaign to malign [me] by planting people […] to file false cases and entangle [me in] legal cases.".[2][5][3]

One former follower who challenged Nirmal Baba for giving dietary advice that exasperated his health problems, was later charged with attempting to blackmail him.[6]

Nirmaljit Singh Narula was born to a Sikh family in 1952 and migrated to India from Pakistan after the partition. Before becoming a spiritual leader, he had business ventures including a garment factory and a mining operation in Jharkhand.[2][5]

In 2014 he was charged with tax evasion in relation to the donations made by his followers.[7]