Kohli's team rejects Rs 5 crore claim over visits to Premanand Maharaj

Virat Kohli's official team has publicly denied a claim that the cricketer was paid Rs 5 crore to visit the Vrindavan saint Premanand Maharaj. It described the allegation as false and without basis.

The charge came from Dinesh Sharma, who is known as Phalahari Maharaj or Phalahari Baba and heads the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Sangharsh Nyas. Speaking in an interview in Vrindavan, he alleged that Kohli, the former India captain, was paid the amount to promote Premanand Maharaj and raise his fame. He went further and said a property syndicate had spent Rs 5 crore to arrange a meeting with the cricketer. According to Sharma, the aim was to dilute the influence of established saints in the Yamuna Khadar area and to build up the standing of a "local saint". He did not name anyone, though he left little doubt about who he meant.

The remarks caused a stir online, and the news spread quickly through the media. For several days people asked why Kohli had not spoken. The team has now responded, and a post on social media is described as its first reaction. It called Sharma's claims "completely false, baseless and factually incorrect". It said Kohli goes to see Premanand Maharaj purely out of faith, devotion and respect, and that he does so "solely out of his deep reverence" for the saint.

The team also made a firm request to journalists. It asked the media to check the facts carefully before they print or broadcast such statements, and to report responsibly. It said it strongly condemns the allegations.

Kohli and his wife, the actress Anushka Sharma, are among the best-known followers of Premanand Maharaj, whose given name is Aniruddh Kumar Pandey. The couple first called on him in 2023, and Kohli has kept going to Vrindavan whenever time allows. Whenever they are in India they visit his ashram for his blessings and guidance. Their children, daughter Vamika and son Akaay, have been taken along on some of these trips. Kohli has also visited the ashram of Baba Neem Karoli.

Kohli once described himself in older interviews as not especially spiritual or religious. In January 2025 a video of Anushka speaking with the saint went viral. She recalled that questions she meant to ask had already been put by others present, and that she often found the same questions being asked in the 'Kanti Vartalap' sessions the next day. She ended by saying, "Now I just want your blessings of love and devotion." After returning to India earlier this year, the two again went to the saint.

On the field, Kohli has just come back from a three-match ODI series against the West Indies, in which he scored a fine century in the previous series, and is spending time with his family. He is next due to play for India against New Zealand, in a five-match ODI series starting on November 4, where he is expected to do well again. With the team's statement, the controversy appears to have been settled.