The desert village of Pareu fell into a grim silence on Friday as hundreds gathered to bury Sadhvi Prem Baisa, a beloved 23-year-old religious storyteller. Dressed in saffron and buried in a sitting position according to Nath traditions, her final rites were clouded by many unanswered questions about her sudden death on January 28.
As Jodhpur police try to piece together the events leading up to the young religious leader’s death, focus has shifted to a strange social media post, a questionable medical procedure, and the removal of security cameras at her ashram.
The fatal injection and a father’s resistance
Prem Baisa was declared “brought dead” at Praksha Hospital at 5:30 PM on Wednesday. Medical staff report she lost consciousness soon after a compounder was called to the Boranada ashram to give her an injection for a sore throat.
Dr. Praveen Jain of Praksha Hospital shared an unusual detail with NDTV: “I told her father to take the body for an autopsy and offered an ambulance. Instead, he took the body back to the ashram in his own vehicle.”
Witnesses described a strange scene later that night. Rudhra Pratap Singh, a devotee, arrived at the ashram to find the sadhvi’s father, Veeram Nath, sitting with the body inside a white Scorpio parked on the road. “He was constantly on the phone and seemed to be resisting the police,” Singh said. “He also refused to give her phone to them; the police eventually had to take it.”
The ‘agni pariksha’ post: A death wish?
Four hours after Prem Baisa’s death, a shocking message appeared on her Instagram account, mentioning “Agni Pariksha” (trial by fire) and a call for justice.
In a statement to NDTV, Veeram Nath confirmed he was the one who posted it. He claims it was his daughter’s final wish: “Thirty seconds before she collapsed, she told me, ‘I never got justice, but I hope after I go, I will get it.’ She said she had written a letter to all saints.”
The father has suggested that her death might be due to a medical mistake. “The compounder may have given the wrong injection or one that was expired,” he said.
CCTV evidence vanishes
Police investigators have found a major obstacle: the CCTV system at the Jodhpur ashram has been removed.
The missing footage is especially concerning due to a scandal that surfaced in July last year. A leaked video from the ashram showed Prem Baisa and her father hugging in her room – an image the sadhvi defended as a simple show of father-daughter affection. She described the leak as a malicious attempt to shame their relationship.
Authorities are now looking into whether the cameras were taken down right after that scandal or more recently to hide what happened leading up to her death.
From truck driver’s daughter to religious icon
Prem Baisa’s rise to fame was as swift as it was controversial. The daughter of a truck driver, she started studying scriptures at a gurukul at 12. Her charm and singing voice quickly made her a regional star, helping to establish three separate ashrams.
However, insiders say her life was filled with challenges, marked by the early loss of her mother and the stress of managing a growing religious following.
Current status of the investigation
While the compounder has been called in for questioning, the Jodhpur police say that the investigation depends on two key factors:
The post-mortem report: To determine the exact chemical cause of death.
Digital forensics: Analysing the sadhvi’s phone to find the “letter to all saints” mentioned by her father.
As the village of Pareu mourns, the question remains whether the “justice” Prem Baisa sought was linked to the leaked videos of her past or something much darker within the ashram.
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