Terror of the wild wild country

Siddharth Tiwari

Terror of the wild wild country

While not many would recognise the name Sheela Birnstiel, the memories of Ma Anand Sheela and the 1984 Rajneeshee bio-terror attack is fresh in the minds of everyone from India to the USA. This is the story of one of the most controversial women of the 20-21st century.

Netflix’s Searching for Sheela follows Sheela’s return to India; Image source: Bustle

Ma Anand Sheela was born Sheela Ambalal Patel in Vadodra, Gujarat. At the age of 18, Sheela went to America to study and married Marc Harris Silverman there. Along with her husband, she returned to India in search of spiritual fulfilment. And that's when she met Acharaya Rajneesh, more commonly known as Osho. When she met Lord Rajneesh (Osho) for the first time, he placed her hand on his head. Sheela felt that the purpose of her life had been fulfilled. This was a turning point in Sheela's life, and no one could imagine what was about to follow.

After her husband's death, she grew closer to Osho. Eventually, Sheela was appointed as Rajneesh's personal secretary. She persuaded Osho to shift his ashram from India to America. And on her advice, a great ashram, 'Rajneeshpuram', was established on 64 thousand acres of deserted land in the Oregon province of America. A Netflix documentary Wild Wild Country shows the thrilling journey of how the ashram was established.

Afterwards, she moved to Switzerland and married Urs Bernstein, a follower of Osho. Sheela's series of controversies didn't end here, though. She was found guilty in 1999 by a Swiss court in connection with a 1985 plan to assassinate US federal prosecutor Charles Turner. The Swiss authorities declined to extradite her to the United States but consented to try her in their country. She was found guilty and served time for a second time.

In her later statements, Sheela had said that Rajneesh was part of all the assaults and plans during the Wasco County elections. She has also stated that charges against her were fabricated and that Rajneesh plotted to have her arrested. In her book, Don't Kill Him: The Story of My Life with Bhagwan Rajneesh: a Memoir. Sheela also accused Osho of sexual harassment and mistreatment.

Nobody knows what really happened in Rajneeshpuram in 1984, except maybe for the people involved. There have been several documentaries and investigative reports, but the narrative never seems to match. Most recently, Netflix's Wild Wild Country and Searching for Sheela throw some light on those controversial years. Whatever the truth might be, it doesn't change that Ma Anand Sheela is a name that everybody knows.

Sheela was responsible for running and managing the whole ashram; Osho did not interfere in it. However, with an increasing number of sannyasis in the ashram and the growing popularity of Osho in the USA, the American government began to grow apprehensive. However, the final straw came at the time of the Wasco county elections.

Sheela had grown power-hungry, and her ambition was at its peak. At the same time, the expanding ashram was coming into conflict with the local residents of Wasco county. Tensions grew, and Sheela sought to influence the upcoming Wasco county elections to win the two open seats. Initially, she tried to increase the vote count in her favour by busing in hundreds of homeless individuals from all around Oregon and enrolling them as county voters. When this did not seem to work, she took some drastic steps.

Sheela conspired to prevent the county residents from voting. She used salmonella bacteria that she grew to infect salad bars in local restaurants. This turned into a disaster, and some 750 people fell sick. To this date, this is the biggest bioterror attack on US soil. Not only this but Sheela was also accused of committing murders to rig the elections.

In the meantime, her relationship with Osho had become sour, and Osho openly made serious allegations against her. He accused her of arson, wiretapping, attempted murder, and mass poisonings.

Some of these accusations proved true when the US authorities found wiretapping networks and a laboratory where the bacteria used in the attack were cultivated while searching her residents.

She was arrested in 1985 and, after constant pressure, pleaded guilty on all charges, including first and second-degree assault, conspiracy to assault, wiretapping and arson. The court sentenced her to 20 years in prison; however, she was released after 39 months due to good behaviour.