14th NationalFIRA Conference

The beginning, 1976

It was 1976, during the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi. The press was subject to pre-publication censorship: censored material had to be removed, and the space could not be left blank. Newspapers wanted to generate controversy and debate, but criticism of the government would be cut out. By the standards of the time, a safer topic was the debate about godmen and their claims of supernatural powers.

Among the most prominent was Sathya Sai Baba of Puttaparthi, who claimed to “materialise” objects from thin air. Two eminent rationalists, Abraham T Kovoor and H Narasimhaiah, challenged such claims. Kovoor, who was born in India and lived in Sri Lanka, visited India to conduct his Divine Miracle Exposure campaigns. He offered a reward of one lakh rupees to anyone who could demonstrate one or more of the so-called miracles on his list. This provoked reactions from orthodox groups and devotees of godmen.

A newspaper published in Manipal carried an article about Kovoor and rationalists in general. I was finishing my MSc at Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, and was furious when I read it. Kudpi Rajanikant Shenoy, my brother Rajendra and I wrote a rejoinder. The editor initially refused to publish it. After arguments and a sit-in of sorts, it appeared. When the editor called Kovoor a fraud, we said we would bring Kovoor to Mangalore so that he could test that claim. The task of arranging the visit fell to us.

We approached the Indian Rationalist Association (IRA) for a programme in Mangalore during Kovoor’s next tour of India, due a few months later. IRA replied that dates could not be allotted to individuals, but organisations could apply subject to certain conditions. We formed the South Kanara Rationalist Association (SKRA). Although it had been conceived a few months earlier, we regard 25 November 1976 as its founding date.

There were about 25 members. Five were over 40; the rest were 25 or younger. The older members were G K Nettar, B R Mallya, Raghuvir Kodial, Dinakar and a Mr Patil, whose first name I cannot recall. He was the registrar of Karnataka Regional Engineering College, now NITK. Among the younger members were Kudpi Rajanikant Shenoy, Vinod Kamath, Manel Annappa Nayak, Prakash Shetty and others from a circle of friends called the Nalli gang. Arunachalam Kumar joined from KMC, Mangalore, where he was in his final year of MBBS. The Nayak family was represented by three brothers: Rajendra, Surendra and me. Other members included bank employees and students. Sadly, there were no women.

Building public outreach

As I recall, the association’s first programme outside its own meetings was at the University of Mysore’s postgraduate centre at Konaje, then known as Mangalagangothri. Panditaradhya, a lecturer there, organised it. As secretary, I spoke to students and staff about rational thinking and attempted to demonstrate how “vibhuti” could apparently be produced from thin air, a signature claim of Sathya Sai Baba. Our apparatus, a pouch connected to a tube, jammed after two demonstrations. The head of the department, Dr Varadaraja Rao, angrily asked who had invited us, but quietened down when told that it was Panditaradhya. Our first attempt at public outreach had mixed results.

Organisational work continued. We communicated by postcards and met at a maidan near what are now the Karavali Utsav grounds. Meanwhile, I married without a religious ceremony, during rahu kalam on a day considered inauspicious, and subsequently became less active. Later presidents and other members tried to sustain the association, but activities were mainly organisational, with little public outreach.

Kovoor’s death in September 1978 left a major gap. Basava Premanand emerged to carry his work forward with energy and commitment. We came into contact with him through Shankar, a magician with Maya Amateur Magicians. Shankar had invited Premanand and his brother Dayanand to conduct Divine Miracle Exposure programmes in the district, beginning in Udupi and continuing in Mangalore.

The Udupi event was held on a Sunday and preceded by a procession in which we performed apparent “miracles”: pulling a car using ropes attached to hooks through the skin of the back, placing burning camphor on the tongue, and other demonstrations. When Premanand opened his speech with the words “Aum is the sound of reproduction”, a crowd rushed onto the stage and attacked him. He stopped speaking, and the rest of the event proceeded smoothly. The Mangalore programme, organised by SKRA, passed without incident.

A regional newspaper then campaigned against rationalists. The association clarified its positions on issues including atheism, provoking a backlash. The magicians distanced themselves, saying they were entertainers without an ideological affiliation. The association decided to work with people who shared its ideological clarity. On Premanand’s next visit, rationalists organised the programmes with Samudaya, a progressive cultural organisation. These were well received. After inviting Premanand several more times, the association decided to develop its own programmes.

The Bharatiya Jana Vignana Jatha in 1987 provided an opportunity. One of its activities promoted scientific temper by explaining so-called miracles. This work later continued through the Bharatiya Gyana Vigyana Samithi. The programmes became widely known, and the association gained recognition in Karnataka. Collaboration with Karnataka Rajya Vijnana Parishat extended our reach through its statewide network of branches.

Campaigns and continuity

After DKRA secretary Narendra Nayak was unanimously elected President of FIRA in 2004, the activities of the two organisations became closely connected. Much of the work conducted by FIRA’s President also reflected DKRA’s contribution. Aid Without Religion Trust was established in 2011 to support people and activities without religious or superstitious conditions, and has financed work needing such assistance.

The National Council for Science and Technology Communication (NCSTC) recognised Narendra Nayak as a national-level master resource person for training science activists and teachers in the scientific explanation of so-called miracles. He has trained thousands of activists across the country.

We have campaigned against superstition and unscientific claims, from misleading advertisements to claims of seeing while blindfolded. We have challenged individuals and organisations in India and abroad, including cases in which religion has been used to exploit followers. We have joined campaigns concerning allegations of exploitation at Dharmasthala. We also took up the case of RTI activist Vinayaka Baliga, who was murdered after questioning the accounts of the Venkataramana Temple and Kashi Math.

We have supported and conducted inter-caste and inter-religious marriages. The secretary also undertook an NCSTC project to train two activists in every district of India to investigate claims of miracles. The project was abandoned after 2014.

Threats and the murders of rationalists added a new dimension to our work. Narendra Dabholkar was killed, followed by Govind Pansare, M M Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh. The secretary received police protection from 2016 to 2023. Attempts were also made on his life, which he survived. Continuing this work has meant facing threats to personal safety.

We remember supporters who are no longer with us. Devadas M, who actively accompanied the secretary on his travels, died of COVID-19 a few years ago. Prasanna, an electrical engineer, was another valued supporter. Vittala Bhandary, who participated in our activities along with his father, R V Bhandary, died during the pandemic.

Many others continue to support the association, both as members and from outside it. A complete list would be difficult to compile, but their contributions have sustained our work.

As DKRA completes 50 years in 2026, we look to a younger generation to continue this work with new ideas and energy. A series of commemorative activities is planned, beginning with an inaugural meeting on 22 November 2026 at the Karnataka Bank Employees Association Auditorium.