The CBI on Sunday started a preliminary inquiry into a written complaint filed against Acharya Balkrishna, man Friday of Yog Guru Baba Ramdev. The complaint states that Balkrishna has concealed/misreported information about himself to procure an Indian passport despite being a citizen of Nepal. Till late Sunday evening, the CBI denied reports that a formal case had been registered against Balkrishna. More than the outcome of the CBI probe what is sure to bother Balkrishna is the fact that the complaint has been filed by Acharya Pramod Krishnam of the Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti (Vedant Ashram) and the Peethadhishwar of Kalki Peeth. Given that Pramod Krishnam enjoys a huge following, his move is sure to erode the faith of many of Balkrishna's disciples.
Earlier, UP in- charge of the Congress Party, Digvijay Singh, had accused Balkrishna of having shifted to India after allegedly committing a crime in Nepal. His complaint, referred to the Central Bureau of Investigation by the department of personnel and training, speaks of concealing truth and aiding in anomalies during processing of his Indian passport (number AS 245797) issued from the RTO, Bareilly. Passport officer (PRO-B) Sudhakar Rastogi when contacted by the TOI said that he was not in a position to provide specific details of the passport in question off-hand. "However I am sure of one thing: if a passport is issued by this office, it means that all proper documentary requirements have been met with. Otherwise, the passport would not have been issued in the first place," Rastogi said.
The CBI sources, quoting those associated with the probe, said that there were reports suggesting that Balkrishna is in possession of two passports issued from India. He is also said to be in possession of a Nepali passport. "This is in gross violation of the Nepal Citizenship Act, 2006 which states that any citizen of Nepal who obtains citizenship of another country must surrender his Nepalese citizenship and Nepalese passport as well. India also does not approve of dual citizenship," the sources said.
According to Balkrishna, he was born in Haridwar (India) while his parents were Nepali. He claims to have lived in India for the better part of his life. "Anyone who is born in India is a citizen of this country by birth. I am an Indian citizen and proud of it as well. I have done no wrong at all. Each and every travel document that I have in possession is a valid official document issued by the government or its agencies," Balkrishna had said recently, talking to mediapersons at Patanjali Yogpeeth in Haridwar.
He also cited the provisions of Indo-Nepal Treaty of 1950 which allows Indian Citizenship to any Nepali who has lived in India for eleven years or more. Balkrishna said his ancestral home was in Syangja district of Western Nepal, where his father (Jayaballav Subedi) and mother live presently. There are reports quoting Jayaballav that Balkrishna was born in India and brought back to Nepal when he was barely 3 months old. When he left Nepal again, he was 11-years-old and studying in Class VI. As per the initial findings of the CBI, the district administration office (DAO) at Syangja does not have any record of Balkrishna's citizenship of Nepal. Balkrishna is seen as the brain behind Baba Ramdev's host of trusts and companies, including Patanjali Yogpeeth, which itself is supposedly worth over Rs 1,100 crore.
The group has incorporated more than 30 different firms dealing in medicine, real estate and construction as well, within a span of five years starting in 2006. Balkrishna is believed to have joined hands with Baba Ramdev and his aide, Karamveer, in early 1990s, after they met at Tripura Yoga Ashram in Haridwar, where they assisted in preparing Ayurvedic medicines. Later, they came across Swami Shankar Dev of Kripalu Bagh Ashram, who had a big plot in the area. It was on this plot that the trio registered their first trust by the name of Divya Yog Mandir on January 5, 1995.
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