Indore, June 12: Spiritual leader Bhaiyyuji Maharaj, known for his political affiliations to  the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), died on Tuesday. Maharaj allegedly committed suicide by shooting himself. He was declared dead on being rushed to Indore's Bombay Hospital.

The suicide note recovered from Maharaj's residence, according to sources, said he was "depressed for a very long time". The police, however, is yet to issue a formal statement on his suicide.

The 50-year-old socio-religious leader had a mass appeal, with his followers in all parts of the nation. Maharaj was recently offered the post of Minister of State in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led Madhya Pradesh government, which he refused to accept. (Read | Who is Bhaiyyuji Maharaj?)

He was also credited for convincing social activist Anna Hazare to end his fast for Lokpal in April this year.

Among the followers of Maharaj include top BJP politicians of Maharashtra, including Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari.

Earlier in the month, Maharaj had assured his supporters in Maharashtra of improving the soaring ties between the Shiv Sena and BJP. "The alliance will remain intact in 2019," a source close to him had quoted Maharah as saying.

About Bhaiyyuji Maharaj

Maharaj was born on April 29, 1968 in Madhya Pradesh's Shujalpur. His real name was Uday Singh Deshmukh. From a young age, he was attracted to religion. Apart from spirituality, he was fond of cricket and chess. After completing his studies, he came to Mumbai to work with a private establishment.

However, disenchanted with his professional life, he switched to modelling and appeared in some of the advertisements of garment brand Siyaram. However, his adherence to spiritual life could not allow him to continue working as a model.

Soon, he founded the Sadguru Datta Dharmik Evam Parmarthik Trust. The headquarters of his organisation is based in Bhopal. he organisation works on social reform, farmers' rights and protection of child rights.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 12, 2018 02:51 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).