However, that did not stop the Prime Minister or his colleagues from seeking the Sai Baba's blessings. The godman, one in the long and ``illustrious'' line of likeminded people like Pilot Baba, Chandra Swami and Deori Baba, to name only a few, also found good occasion to espouse some of his beliefs which, not perhaps again quite incidentally, seemed to mirror a subtly refined version of the Sangh Parivar's ``Hindutva'' doctrine. The godman extolled the virtues of ``Indianness'' and said that no development could be possible unless the country looked towards its basic ``Indianness.'' Whatever he may have meant which to some people was meant to be new in content and approach, the fact remains that the Sai Baba, during his discourse, was only pandering to sentiments which could give some new thrust and justify the Prime Minister's visit.

Using religion for political ends is nothing new in India; even a Prime Minister who touted the 21st century as his very ``own dream and vision'' used to frequent one ``Machan Baba'' in Deoria and obliged the godman by allowing him to bless the highest executive officer of the country by a touch of one of his exalted feet. In this, Indira Gandhi was no better and definitely no laggard in this regard; she gave a totally different dimension to the art of yoga by promoting a ``bramhachari'' who went by the name of Dhirendra. Also, she was frequenter to Anandamoyee Ma, another religious figure. There can be nothing undemocratic in practising one's religion and seeking personal blessings from any godman given the wide choice that India has to offer' what, however, could be criminal if such beliefs are used politically and gain mileage among a section of people. When the Prime Minister of a nation touches the feet of a godman, he willy nilly opens himself up to the domain of the possible. And when a person with the huge fan following like the Sai Baba mouths a very religious version of what is essentially a political dogma, then the intentions could border on the various finite impossibilities that this country has always, at times quite incredulously, made happen.