Until last week, Ramdev was one of India’s most famous Yoga gurus, thanks to his daily lessons on Aastha TV, which are reportedly watched by some 30-40 million people nation-wide. The New York Times called him “an Indian who built a Yoga empire, a product and symbol of the New India, a yogic fusion of Richard Simmons, Dr Oz and Oprah Winfrey, irrepressible and bursting with Vedic wisdom”. By Ramdev’s own admission, the man who claims to have renounced all worldly pleasures runs four trusts whose assets run into Rs 1,100 crore, owns a £2 million island in Scotland, and flies around in a private jet. To many that makes him look more like Vijay Mallya, than the Yoga guru and other-worldly sage that he claims to be. And that apparently is just his four trusts and their affiliated companies. Many allege that he has holdings in many shadow companies. For the government, all that was fine. Even Ramdev’s ambition to launch a political party. Until he began to use the UPA’s weakest spot — corruption and black money — as his launch pad.
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