BANGALORE, May 10: They were there, in flowing saffron and white robes, tonsured heads, clean-shaven faces, and soft-spoken voices. And they had their answers ready.

Acharya Sri Samadarshini of the controversial temple of Sriman Kalki Bhagwan, was fielded questions by media persons, accompanied by around 20 young girls, all monks of the order.

Announcing that the `Bhagwan,' after a gap of over three years, would once again show himself to the people at Satyalok, in Andhra Pradesh, on May 12, she said, ``The movement has been suffering a lot, especially in Tamil Nadu. The DMK thinks we could become some kind of political movement. For the past one-and-a-half months, we have been targeted''.

The Ashram in the city had recently been searched by the police for Anand of Chennai. ``He is not here and has never been. When he disappeared we were not even taking people as monks''.

Contrary to widespread belief, youngsters were here as monks with the consent of parents, she claimed. ``Of our 142 monks, (75 are female) only two people did not have their parents' consent. Parents of the boy Venkat visited us, and we sent him back with them. And as for Savitha, she has never received love and affection in her life. When she came here, she asked her brother, who agreed. Later suddenly they were here and wanted her back''. Bhavani, the girl who has also been in the news with her aunt charging coercion, was present at the conference. She said: ``I have my parents' permission. Nobody seems to be paying any attention to my mother reiterating that I had her permission. I do not need anyone else's. These people (relatives) did not care about me then. Why all this now?''

``When a girl can become a doctor, engineer and the like, why can't she choose this way of life, which is so much more beautiful, much more sacred? I came to Kalki because I discovered him to be the Lord. I wanted to join the movement to work for the people who do not know that the Lord has come. Right now I have no other responsibility other than Kalki, no other priority''.

Samadarshini, who herself is young, and whose relatives also charge that she does not have her parents' consent, offered this rebuttal to charges of escapism on the part of the young monks. ``People always rebel against something that goes against the accepted norms. They want to tread the safe path. But there is such a thing as truth. We have no interest in the world. The world outside has no place in our hearts. And we do not hypnotise people or anything, such things are not possible the way people believe''.

She said that there was compulsion on the monks, forcing them to stay there. ``They are free to go back. We even make arrangements for them to leave. The life of monks can be quite rigorous. Only two people, Kanthi of Salem and Shankar of Chennai, have wanted to go back so far, and we sent them back''. ``And I have never asked anyone to join our order. This is the truth. And even when the parents agree, we ask the person wanting to join to stay back at home for some time. We want parents to find out if they are trying to escape something. We don't simply take people. Even now there are many who want to join''.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.