Talwandi Khurad Dham chief booked after video surfaces; CBI probe demanded

The functioning of a charity organisation operating at Talwandi Khurad village near here has come under scrutiny after an alleged ‘obscene’ video of its chief with a female devotee surfaced and went viral on social media a few days ago.

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Although the chief of Bhuriwale Dham Talwandi, Shankranand, has been booked under Section 299 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on the complaint of a devotee, local residents, along with office-bearers and activists of various religious and social organisations, are demanding a CBI inquiry into the functioning of the organisation and the immediate arrest of the accused.

The parent organisation, Acharaya Aad Gaddi, Chhatri Sahib Mandir in Haryana, has also taken serious note of the matter. The body has removed Shankranand from the chieftainship of the Dera and demanded the seizure of all bank accounts associated with the organisation.

In a communication addressed to the Chief Secretary of the Punjab Government, the DGP Punjab and the SSP Ludhiana (Rural), Mahant Dayasagar, chief of the Sarvoch Garibdass Peeth, Chhatri Sahib Mandir, Chhudani Dham, District Jhajjar (Haryana), called for strict action against Shankranand following the circulation of the objectionable video.

“I also urge upon you to register an FIR against the above-mentioned persons (Shankranand and his accomplice),” Dayasagar wrote to the SSP Ludhiana (Rural), adding that a new chief and committee would soon be deployed at Dham Talwandi.

Dayasagar further demanded that the district administration halt all activities and transactions related to the organisation at Talwandi Khurad.

Meanwhile, activists led by Jasminder Singh Saran of Talwandi Khurad have alleged that the accused attempted to evade immediate legal action by orchestrating a case on the basis of a statement by one of his close aides, with intentions to withdraw it later.

“We demand that a fresh case should be registered under stricter sections of BNS and all financial transactions related to the collection of huge funds under the pretext of charity and the purchase of properties should be probed by an independent central agency, like the CBI,” demanded residents of the area.

Residents claimed the accused had enjoyed a special status in society and among those in power by projecting philanthropic work. He has also been running an international foundation as an NGO for orphaned, abandoned and differently-abled children, many of whom were adopted by childless couples, including families from foreign countries.

Meanwhile, the anticipatory bail plea of Swami Shankranand has been dismissed by the Additional District and Sessions Judge’s Court in Ludhiana.