Ashutosh (spiritual leader)

Ashutosh (1946–29 January 2014),also called as Maharaj Ji by his disciples, is an Indian spiritual leader, preacher, and founder head of Divya Jyoti Jagriti Sansthan (DJJS), a non-profit spiritual organisation. On 29 January 2014, he was declared clinically dead by a team of doctors after suffering a heart attack. However his followers believe him to be alive and in the state of a samadhi or deep meditation. his body has been kept in a freezer by the management of DJJS, hoping for him to come out of mediation. He was in his 60s at the time of his death. Although worshipped by his followers, Ashutosh was seen as a controversial figure by the Sikh community and was often accused of distorting Sikh teachings.

Early life

Ashutosh was born as Mahesh Kumar Jha in 1946 at Lakhnaur in Madhubani district, Bihar into a Hindu Brahmin family. He held a bachelor's degree in English. He was married to Anandi Devi and the couple had a son named Dilip. Ashutosh left his family in 1973. For some amount of time, he was associated with Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti headed by Satpal Maharaj.

Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan

Ashutosh founded Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan as a non-profit spiritual organisation in Nurmahal, Punjab, India in 1983. It was registered as a socio-spiritual society/non-governmental organisation in 1991 under the Societies Registration Act with its head office in New Delhi. The organisation claims to have about 30 million (30 million) followers. It has 350 branches in total 15 countries and its total property has been estimated to be above 10 billion rupees (160 million USD). According to the organisation's website, their mission is "To usher into a world wherein every individual becomes an embodiment of truth, fraternity, and justice through the eternal science of self-realization – 'Brahm Gyan', uprooting in its wake all social evils and threat". As the head of the organisation, Ashutosh is seen as a controversial figure among Sikh community, who have alleged him to be hurting Sikh religious sentiments. He has been accused of distorted Sikh teachings, called Banis, and making negative comments about Sikhism and the Sikh gurus. Various Sikh bodies have been demanding a ban on Ashutosh's activities. There have been several violent clashes between his followers and some Sikh groups. In December 2009, one person died during one such clash in Ludhiana. He was provided "Z+" security by the Indian government, which was later lowered to "Z" class security.

Death

On 29 January 2014, Ashutosh suffered a heart attack and was declared clinically dead upon examination by a team of doctors. His followers however believe him to be alive and in a state of deep meditation called samadhi. , his body has been kept in a freezer by the management to create Himalayan-like environment suitable for meditation. At the time of his death, Ashutosh was in his 60s. Ashutosh's former chauffeur Pooran Singh suspected wrongdoings and filed a habeas corpus writ, seeking the release of Ashutosh's body. After the rejection of his writ, Singh has filed a petition in the court seeking a post-mortem examination of the dead body. Ashutosh's son Dilip Kumar Jha also appealed to court, demanding his body to be brought to his home town in Bihar for performing the cremation according to local rituals. The DJJS management have claimed that Ashutosh is single and does not have any family.