After the welcoming ceremonies, Baba gave darshan and prasad to the women and students inside, and hundreds surged forward to take advantage of it. Goldney and Pukar locked hands to stem the tide of the crowd from overwhelming Baba with garlands and embraces.
Baba was then carried outside and sat on the verandah to give darshan and distribute prasad to his lovers and many others from Poona whose number now exceeded 10,000. Elbows flew as some pressed forward. The situation became so serious that Baba's safety was at stake. Physically, Baba was suffering terribly, but despite it, he had come to Poona to give darshan. The crowd continued to grow out of control and pandemonium eventually broke out.
A well-known singer, Devendra Vaidya, who had been on Baba's return flight from Australia had come with his party to sing before Baba. But his harmonium and other instruments got broken in the mêlée and total confusion reigned. The mandali surrounded Baba as the police appeared on the scene. Not knowing who they were, the police roughly manhandled the mandali and separated them from Baba. Kumar was forcibly removed and taken some distance away where he was made to sit down. He, whom Baba had made the "Commander-in-Chief" during the Andhra and Hamirpur programs, was now in the custody of the police! Bhau was shoved so violently that he was just saved from falling several feet. Had Narayan Bundellu not caught him in time, he would have been badly injured.
On the one hand, the mandali were pleased that the police had come and now surrounded Baba, but on the other, they had Baba's order to remain close to him during the program. The police would not allow them to come near, and they had to stand helplessly at a distance. Only Eruch was allowed to stand by Baba's side, conveying Baba's words.
Although order was restored after some time, the crowd continued to be undisciplined despite the presence of the police. Nothing could be done to keep people in line. The out-of-town lovers had been pushed back and had to stand in the hot sun near the gate. Amidst the throng, Bhau observed his wife, Rama, with their two small children, Sheela and Mehernath, and Rama's brother Dhiraj, moving towards Baba. Bhau tried to approach Baba, but the police again did not permit it, and he was unable to meet his family. In spite of their being there for Baba's darshan, Bhau had no chance of speaking with them, not even a minute. From a distance, Bhau could see that Baba asked his wife how the children were, and he made Sheela turn around and show him her burnt back. The skin had healed with hardly a trace of the accident's scars.