Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru

Mangaluru, May 12: An FIR has been registered in Suratkal police station against Sri Samyamindra Teertha Swamiji of Kashi Math and two other individuals under sections 403,406,420 and 34 of the IPC for cheating, criminal conspiracy and breach of trust. Two bank managers also have been booked, based on the complaint filed by Sri Raghavendrateertha Swamiji, the 21st pontiff of Kashi Math.

In a press release, Prof Narendra Nayak of 'Desha Premi Sanghatanegala Okkuta' stated, "While the case prima facie seems to be that of a dispute to the assets of the Math, the criminal element has crept in as the fixed deposit receipt was in the name of Raghavendrateertha and the bank has transferred the amount to some other person without a proper authorization from the original beneficiary.

"This matter has a larger dimension too. The late Vinayak Baliga who had been murdered brutally in March 2016 allegedly for questioning the irregularities in the affairs of the Kashi Math and Venkatramana Temple was said to be in the know of all these affairs. His sisters have been trying to get a special investigation team to go into these issues but have not met with success so far," the release stated.

The complainant had deposited an amount of Rs 10,00,000 in the bank when he was camping in Mangaluru on February 10, 1999 as per receipt no 474760(387/98-99). On February 22 this year, he requested the accused bank manager to provide the statement of account for the deposit and was informed that the amount had been transferred in the name of a Math headed by Shrimad Samyamindrateertha Swami as he had produced the original receipt and some records relating to a case OS 34/2000. "This however turned out to be a suit between the late Sudhindrateertha and Raghavendrateertha and any decree in his (Sudhindrateeirtha's) favour could not be used to enforce some other property in someone else’s name. While the FD was in the name of the individual Raghavendrateertha Swamiji it was transferred to the other name, allegedly the head of a Math. As the accused number 1 had produced an FD receipt which was not in his name the criminal conspiracy between the accused arises," the release said.

The complaint states that these being cognizable offences, the accused have to be proceeded against. It has been also questioned as to how the accused number 1 came in possession of the FD receipt which was in the name of the complainant.

"Hence the FIR has been made and submitted to the first CJM court in Mangaluru city. It is also said that there are several such deposits and the details were all known to the murdered RTI activist Vinayak Baliga who is supposed to have had records of the same. The papers were all taken by the Barke police and there have been allegations that some of these have been destroyed. While this case can go on, the mens rea behind the murder of Vinayak Baliga has to be investigated and that would be possible only through a SIT constituted specifically for this purpose," Prof Nayak said.

"In the murder case of Vinayak Baliga the police did not have the courage to question Sri Samyamindrateertha. Will they dare to in this case is something that has to be seen or is it that such people are above the laws of the land? While a common man committing such offences would be summoned to the police station interrogated and arrested, the religious heads seem to be immune to laws of the land," he alleged.