The Hindu : Front Page : BDA file related to ISKCON property goes missing

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BDA file related to ISKCON property goes missing

Krishnaprasad

Pages missing in another file on land allotment to society

BDA got wind of the missing file in September 2008
A dispute is on over the ownership of the ISKCON property in Bangalore

— Photo: K. Gopinathan

In focus: The ISKCON temple in Bangalore.

Bangalore: A file in the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) relating to the building plan sanctioned for the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) for construction of its temple in 1991-92 has gone missing.

Also, another file related to allotment of land to ISKCON has been allegedly tampered with as some pages in the file are missing.

The BDA got wind of the missing file in September 2008 when some persons sought details, under the Right to Information Act, of the plan sanctioned for construction of the ISKCON temple.

Acting on it, the BDA Commissioner referred the matter to the Vigilance Wing, headed by a Superintendent of Police, for prosecuting employees and officers responsible for the loss. But the Vigilance Wing has so far not made any headway in locating the file.

Copies of the ISKCON temple’s sanctioned plan surfaced in the Engineering Cell of the BDA soon after the matter was referred to the Vigilance Wing, but the original file with all other documents is still missing.

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Jagadish Shettar last week constituted a House Committee to look into the activities of ISKCON, Bangalore, including alleged financial irregularities, involvement in real estate business, misuse of funds granted under the midday meal scheme, and illegal collection of donations. All these charges have been levelled against it by a section of legislators.

The missing file has also raised concerns about safety of files and documents pertaining to BDA properties.

A dispute is on over the ownership of the ISKCON property in Bangalore between those who are currently managing it and ISKCON, Mumbai. While ISKCON, Mumbai, claims that ISKCON, Bangalore, is one of its branches, those managing the affairs of the latter claim it is an independent society and not a branch of ISKCON, Mumbai, which is the headquarters of the society in India.

Meanwhile, the Vigilance Wing has identified an engineer who served in the BDA’s Engineering Cell from 1990 to 1999 and who was in charge of the documents in the authority. However, there are still no answers to the question of who could have benefited from the missing file.

A senior official of the BDA told The Hindu that the missing file might serve as an important document in the case related to the ownership dispute. The BDA is not a party in the case. “As the instance of the missing file has pointed fingers at security of documents in the BDA, our priority is to trace the file and punish persons responsible for the loss,” said the officer.

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