Haridwar:
There's no end to the great Indian
tamasha. Today, it was the turn of Ramdev's key aide, Balkrishna, who was in tears as he appeared before the media.
He surfaced two days after mysteriously disappearing following the Saturday night crackdown and denied reports he had been arrested.
"I stayed there because I wanted to make sure that everyone is safe. So many people who were injured were safe, I organised ambulances to transport them to Haridwar," Balakrishna said.
But he may have a lot more explaining to do, given the allegations that he owns fake passports and is from Nepal and has fudged an Indian passport.
Sources tell NDTV that the Ministry of Corporate Affairs are now scrutinising papers of at least 34 firms, including broadcasting companies like Aastha TV and food parks, Balakrishna is a director of.
Balakrishna is also fighting land-grabbing charges with authorities in Haridwar who have accused him of grabbing almost three hectares of land to set up a yoga gram.
Balkrishna had also struck the land deal for Ramdev's Patanjali ashram in Haridwar, but the ownership of the plot is now being contested in court.
"There should be an inquiry into who is this man? My information is only that he committed crimes in Nepal and came to India. There should be a probe," Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh had said.
It's clear that Balakrishna, alias Acharya, plays many roles in Ramdev's life - manager, Ayurvedic doctor, Man Friday, but above all else, a childhood friend.
The two go back some 22 years ago when they first met at a Gurukul in Haryana, and in 1995, set up their first ashram together.
Now, after their many successes at yoga and Ayurveda, the two find themselves in the midst of what is perhaps their most serious crisis to date - battling a belligerent government.