Owner has link to area

Rochester Post-Bulletin/April 11, 2005

The man who owns gasoline stations at the center of a price war, R.C. Samanta Roy, is no stranger to controversy.

Roy, also known as Brother Rama Behera, is a native of India and a former Hindu who converted to Christianity in 1966. Behera apparently formed The Disciples of the Lord Jesus, a group that rejects mainstream religion, in 1974 after marrying a woman from St. Charles.

The group attracted followers in Rochester and wound up in the middle of two sensational stories after members were abducted in Rochester in 1976 and in Winona in 1982 in apparent attempts by their parents to “deprogram” them from the group’s beliefs.

Since 2000, the Disciples have purchased and operated several businesses, including gas stations. They have no known activities in Rochester.

Retraction

Rochester Post-Bulletin/April 20, 2005

Dr. R.C. Samanta Roy does not individually own gasoline stations that are being investigated for allegedly selling gasoline for less than the state’s minimum price, as stated in a Post-Bulletin story on Page 1A April 11. Also, Roy’s religious affiliation has no relation to the investigation.