Nurmahal, January 29 – Ashutosh, head of Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan sect, died of sudden heart attack in Noormahal Dera in early hours of Wednesday morning.
The exact cause of death of the Dera head is yet to be confirmed officially by the dera, however, sources said the dera head died after having severe pain in the chest.
Dr Kapil Chib, Medical Superintendent, Apollo Hospital, said they got a call from the dera late last night. “We rushed our team there. But by the time our medicos reached there, the patient was dead,” he said. Asked if they had issued a death certificate, he replied: “We were not asked to issue any such certificate”.
Addressing a press conference this afternoon, dera chief spokesperson Swami Vishalanand said: “ Sewadars noticed Ashutosh Maharaj in the same posture from 12.15 am to 2.30 am. They got panicky and informed the security following which doctors from the Apollo Hospital were called.
“Ashutosh Maharaj has gone into samadhi and can control his breath, pulse and heartbeat. We feel he will regain strength in two days,” he said, claiming that 12 years ago, Ashutosh Maharaj had gone into samadhi and then returned to normal life.
Following the news of his death, followers have started moving towards Noormahal.
Balbir Kumar Bawa, IG, Jalandhar (Zonal), said adequate arrangements had been made in and the dera vicinity to check any untoward incident. Police personnel from Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur and Kapurthala had been deployed in two shifts for a round-the-clock vigil. If needed, teams from Ludhiana would be called, he said. Jaspreet Singh Sidhu, SSP, Jalandhar-Rural, said more than 300 policemen were on duty.
Jalandhar Deputy Commissioner Varun Roojam refused to say anything when asked if the dera head was dead.