Panel will Inspect Accounts of ISKCON Bangalore

BY: STAFF CORRESPONDENT

May 29, 2011 — BANGALORE, INDIA (DNA) — The supervisory committee constituted by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), Mumbai, will on Monday begin checking the accounts of ISKCON's Bangalore centre to find if any financial irregularities or scams have been committed by Madhu Pandit dasa, the society's president in the city.

A 12-year-old legal battle between the two ISKCONs had come to an end recently with the high court giving the Mumbai ISKCON the rights over the property in Bangalore. The court also ruled that Bangalore ISKCON should function according to the bye-laws of the Mumbai society.

ISKCON Mumbai wants to probe the alleged financial irregularities committed by Pandit dasa. "The ISKCON temple in Bangalore is not Madhu Pandit's family business. It is a branch of ISKCON and is under the control of the Mumbai bureau. In other words, ISKCON Bangalore temple is like any other temple of the society in India," said Dayaram dasa, Chairman of the legal committee.

"We want to clarify that there is only one ISKCON and it has branches all over India. The battle is not between the Bangalore ISKCON and the Mumbai ISKCON, but between Madhu Pandit das and ISKCON," he said.

The five-member supervisory committee comprising Dayaram dasa, the Chairman Varadakrishna das, Muralishyam das, Rajendra Kamatgoudar and SP Rajeshwari to supervise the affairs of ISKCON Bangalore branch.

The committee would camp at ISKCON Bangalore for a week from Monday. It would look into the alleged frauds committed by Madhu Pandit dasa and file a report to the Mumbai bureau.

If Pandit dasa did not come out with the frauds voluntarily in seven days, the committee would take action according to the law, said Dayaram dasa. The jurisdictional police have been requested to provide adequate protection to the panel members, so that they could discharge their duties, he said.

"Apart from the financial irregularities, Madhu Pandit dasa has created a few independent trusts like Akshaya Patra Foundation. We have to bring back all of them to ISKCON. He has used the ISKCON funds to create such independent trusts," said Ananda Gouranga Dasa of ISKCON of Jagannath Mandir, another branch at Sheshadaripuram.

Reacting to this statement, Madhu Pandit dasa said the supervisory committee formed by the Mumbai was unconstitutional. "The temple has several moveable assets. Any change of hands has to be recorded under the court's supervision. The supervisory committee has been formed by ISKCON just to put impediments and hurdles in the process to move the Supreme Court," he said.

A related article from the Times of India:

STAFF CORRESPONDENT
BANGALORE, INDIA

A supervisory committee set up by the governing body of ISKCON temples will inspect the Bangalore office of ISKCON from Monday. It will look into the alleged misappropriation in the Bangalore branch. After seven days, the committee will send a report to the governing committee. This follows the high court verdict in favour of Mumbai ISKCON.

"We want to make this point clear. It is not a case between Bangalore branch and Mumbai branch of ISKCON. It is a case between Madhupandit das and ISKCON," Dayaram das, Chairman of the five-member supervisory committee, told the media on Sunday.

Dayaram said the decision whether Madhupandit das should be removed from position of president of ISKCON Bangalore will be taken based on the committee's report.

However, the governing committee will not be able to remove Madhupandit das from his position as President for next six weeks. As per the high court order, for six weeks status quo has to be maintained in the leadership of the temple.

The committee members said they will visit the Bangalore temple complex with police protection. Anticipating trouble, a request was sent to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, North, for security.

The committee claimed they sent a letter to Madhupandit das and that there was no response.

Read the complete story here.