Doctors treating Indian spiritual leader Sai Baba, one of the country’s most famous gurus, said Thursday his health was deteriorating fast as devotees gathered to pray for his recovery.
Police in Sai Baba’s hometown of Puttaparthi in Andhra Pradesh, southeast India, erected crowd barriers to control worried followers who rushed to the hospital where he was being treated. Well-wishers have converged on Puttaparthi, many of them sleeping out in the open on pavements because of a lack of hotel rooms.
A medical bulletin said the vital organs of the 85-year-old Hindu mystic were “showing very poor response to the treatment” since he was hospitalised last month with a heart condition, lung congestion and kidney failure.
“Non-functioning of the liver and persistent episodes of low blood pressure are causing great worry to the doctors,” the bulletin said.
moreSai Baba is credited by millions of followers around the world with having supernatural powers, including an ability to conjure objects out of thin air, remember past lives and cure terminal diseases.
He counts former prime ministers and presidents, top businessmen and even Indian cricket superstar Sachin Tendulkar among his followers. AFP
