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Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Hyderabad has conducted search operations at 11 locations in and around Hyderabad under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 on 21.06.2024 & 22.06.2024 in connection with irregularities in Operation Mobilization (OM) group of charities.
ED initiated an investigation based on FIR registered by Telangana CID against Operation Mobilisation group of charities and others for raising substantial funds of around Rs. 300 Crore from foreign donors (through Operation Mobilization and Dalit Freedom Network based in USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Argentina, Denmark, Germany, Finland, Ireland, Malaysia, Norway, Brazil, Czech Republic, France, Romania, Singapore, Sweden and Switzerland) in the name of providing free education and meals to dalit and downtrodden children, studying in more than 100 Good Shepherd Schools run by them, and diverting the said funds for asset creation & other unauthorised purposes. CID investigation revealed that suppressing the fact of sponsorship of students, tuition and other fees ranging from Rs. 1,000 to 1,500 per month were collected from the students and substantial funds were put into fixed deposits and/or diverted to other related entities of O.M. group. Funds were also received from the Government under the Right to Education Act but the same were not recorded properly and other incomes were grossly underreported in the books of accounts.
Preliminary investigation by ED revealed that several suspicious transactions indicating diversion of the funds of the O.M. group of charities and multiple immovable properties of the key office bearers of the group spread across Telangana, Goa, Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra. ED investigation also revealed that FCRA registrations for most of the group entities were not renewed and to bypass the same, foreign funds received in FCRA registered ‘OM Books Foundation’ were diverted to other group entities as loans which are yet to be repaid. PMLA investigation also revealed that office bearers of Operation Mobilisation group were employed as consultants with shell entities incorporated in Goa and were receiving salaries.
Searches at the premises of key office bearers and the head office of the OM group of charities resulted in the recovery and seizure of incriminating documents, digital devices, records of clandestine transactions and benami companies. In addition, several properties of the key functionaries of the OM group of charities, suspected to be acquired out of proceeds of crime, have been unearthed.
Speaking about the ED raids on Operation Mobilisation, AS Santosh, the president of the Legal Right Protection Forum, said, “Disrespecting the laws of the land seems to be the hallmark of Christian missionaries operating in Bharat. There are numerous cases registered across the country against these kinds of organizations regarding their sinister designs. They approach society under the guise of social service and charity but end up acting against the interests of the country.”
On November 21 2020, the Economic Offences Wing of the Telangana Crime Investigation Department reportedly froze 26 bank accounts that belong to Operation Mobilization Trust and its group of Christian Charity organizations based on criminal complaints lodged by Albert Lael, former Chief Finance Officer of Operation Mobilization India group of charities.
Albert Lael, who is also the National director of 103 Good Shepherd Schools, has filed criminal complaints with the Criminal Investigation Department against Joseph D’Souza, his son Josh D’Souza, and several others. Joseph D’Souza is the President of the Christian evangelical organization, Operation Mobilization, and several other entities such as ‘Operation Mercy India Foundation’, Dignity Freedom Network (erstwhile Dalit Freedom Network), Good Shepherd Schools, and All India Christian Council.
On January 22, 2021, a 48-year-old father filed a complaint with the Cyberabad Police against members of Operations Mobilisations. He accused them of visiting her daughter as part of their evangelical activities and Bible teachings then falsely portrayed his 20-year-old daughter as a victim of human trafficking and infected with HIV/AIDS on their website. Her pictures were posted, depicting her as a Jogini (a practice akin to temple prostitutes/devadasis), causing the family severe mental agony, public shame, and a loss of dignity.
The complaint also states that “These mindless and abusive criminal acts by the group caused them to suffer mental agony, public shame, and a loss of self-respect and dignity. The accused individuals also used the complainant’s and his daughter’s names and pictures, posting them on a Dalit website on December 15, 2020, at 06:30, falsely projecting them as victims of human trafficking and HIV/AIDS.
The accused persons by the complainant are 1. Joseph Dsouza, Head of Operation Mobilisation India and International President of Dalit and Dignity Freedom Network, 2. Beryl Dsouza, Director of Joginis Shelter. 3. Elsie Rajaiah Jeyaraj, 4. Kumar Swamy, Director, Dalit Freedom Network. 5. Josh Dsouza, Dalit Freedom Network, India Director.
Operation Mobilisation (OM) is a Christian missionary organisation that started in 1957 in Mexico and spread to Europe and India by 1963. As per its website, this missionary has more than 5,000 workers representing 134 nationalities serving or in partnership in over 147 countries.
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