Cycle of life: CRPF havildar who became sadhu after sacking rejoins his battalion | Bhopal News
BHOPAL: In 1999, a bicycle that Girvar Singh Tomar swears to this day never touched his officer’s vehicle cost him his CRPF uniform after nine years in the force. He returned to his native Morena in MP, drifted into faith and, by 2001, was a member of Nirmohi Akhara.Switching to mustard robes, Baba Girvar Das lived as a sadhu in temples like Bara Dwari and Gufa Mandir for the next two decades while the courts heard his case.Last week, at 54, Das’s 27-year fight for justice ended with CRPF authorities complying with Chhattisgarh high court’s 2025 order to reinstate him. Baba Girvar Das boarded a train from Morena to Bijapur on the night of Aug 25 and, on arrival the next morning, walked straight into a barber’s shop to have his locks trimmed and his flowing white beard shaved off.By afternoon, he was reunited with CRPF’s 85th battalion, trading his sadhu robes for crisp khaki, cap and a pair of freshly polished Oxfords.“It’s all by the grace of God,” Tomar told TOI. “Feels like I have returned home.”Tomar’s journey from the barracks to the life of a wandering sadhu and back started with an incident that he now believes was meant to test his faith. A native of Chhichhawali village in Morena, Tomar joined CRPF as a havildar in 1991 and his career was on track until his dispute with a senior officer changed everything.‘Only one or two people from my time remain’I contested the allegation that my bicycle hit his vehicle. That made the situation worse,” he said of his dismissal from service.Tomar filed a petition in the HC in 1999 and received a ruling in his favour in 2007. But CRPF obtained a stay, forcing him into another round of litigation. Last year, the court again ruled that Tomar had been illegally dism-issed and must be reinstated.So, now that Tomar is back with his battalion, how have things changed within the force? “Only one or two people from my time remain, but colleagues here are so welcoming and caring, it’s as if I never left,” he said. The return to khaki, though, does not mean Tomar is moving away from spirituality.
