NEW DELHI: A dispute has erupted over the ancestral home of Hindu saint Baba Neem Karoli Maharaj in Uttar Pradesh, with his six granddaughters alleging that the property is being illegally occupied and controlled by a trust headed by their aunt, PTI reported.Following the complaint, Firozabad District Magistrate Santosh Kumar Sharma has constituted a three-member committee to investigate the ownership and management of the property, according to PTI.The committee is headed by additional district magistrate (Judicial) Arvind Kumar Dwivedi and includes Tundla Sub-Divisional Magistrate Divya Singh and District Tourism Officer Vishal Srivastava.The dispute concerns house number 154 and adjoining structures in Akbarpur village under Tundla tehsil, the birthplace of Baba Neem Karoli, whose original name was Lakshmi Narayan Sharma, according to PTI.The property, which is being developed as a tourist attraction by the Uttar Pradesh tourism department, includes the saint’s meditation room, dining area, guest quarters and bedroom.The ancestral residence is a duplex built on a plot measuring around 4,000 square feet and is currently managed by the Shri Neem Karoli Maharaj Trust, headed by the saint’s daughter Girija Devi Bhatele. His late wife Rambeti was its former president.According to family sources cited by PTI, the dispute came to the fore during a family event on August 24, when the six daughters of the saint’s late son Dharm Narayan Sharma were allegedly denied accommodation in rooms at the ancestral property.Following the incident, the six granddaughters, Sunita Sharma, Archana Sharma, Vandana Sharma, Bhavna Rawat, Ritu Tiwari and Richa Rawat, submitted a representation to the District Magistrate seeking that the ancestral residence be freed from the Trust’s control, PTI reported.Manoj Rawat, husband of Bhavna Rawat, confirmed to PTI that relevant property documents had been submitted to the inquiry committee after it sought them.However, Dhananjay Sharma, son of the saint’s other late son Anek Singh Sharma, rejected the allegations and said that the property had been handed over to the Trust in accordance with Baba Neem Karoli’s wishes.He expressed concern over the public nature of the dispute and appealed to family members to resolve the matter amicably.Trust secretary Sanjay Gupta also denied allegations of illegal occupation and rejected claims of an internal dispute within the Trust. He said he had been appointed by Dharm Narayan Sharma and continued to serve the institution.Gupta told PTI that the Trust had not received any official notice from the district administration so far.
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The dispute comes amid renewed public interest in Baba Neem Karoli’s life and legacy following the release of Hanuman Ansh, a devotional biographical film based on the saint’s life.Released on August 7, 2026, the low-budget film starring Shobhinaww Satyaa became a sleeper hit following strong word-of-mouth publicity. It reportedly collected more than Rs 150 crore worldwide within a month, bringing renewed attention to the saint’s life and his birthplace, PTI reported.