The Madhya Pradesh government has refused to accept Computer Baba alias Namdev Das Tyagi’s demand for a helicopter to assess the plantation work done along the Narmada river.

Minister for religious trusts and endowments PC Sharma said on Thursday, “Computer Baba has been appointed as the chairman of the river trust. He is supposed to have meetings (with officials concerned). He does not need a helicopter.”

The religious leader was appointed as the chairman of ‘Ma Narmada, Ma Shipra, Ma Mandakini Nadi Nyas’ by the Congress government in March this year. However, he assumed office at the state secretariat on June 6 in the presence of former AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh. After assuming office, he raised the demand for a helicopter.

Computer Baba hit headlines in March last year when he and four other religious leaders were accorded minister of state status by the then BJP government as members of a committee to work on conservation of the Narmada river. His appointment came after he threatened to expose the alleged scam of the then BJP government in plantation work on the banks of the Narmada.

However, ahead of state assembly elections he resigned from his post and switched over to the Congress while accusing then chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan of doing nothing for the conservation of the Narmada river except making tall promises and lacking the will power to check illegal mining on the river bank.

During the Lok Sabha elections, he declared his political ambitions saying he would win the election if he was given a ticket by the Congress. However, the party didn’t pay heed to his demand.

During the election he along with scores of sadhus performed a hawan and held a road show for Digvijaya Singh’s victory from the Bhopal seat. However, the latter couldn’t win the election.

Despite efforts, Computer Baba could not be reached for any comment.

First Published: Jun 13, 2019 16:55 IST