By Phuntsok Yangchen
DHARAMSHALA, November 24: The Indian Enforcement Directorate (ED) has dropped all charges giving its clean chit to the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje in connection with seizure of foreign currency worth 5.97crore from Gyuto monastery in 2011.
According to Indian news daily, Indian Express, “An order by the ED’s Adjudicating Authority has cleared the Karmapa of violations under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). It has, however, held the Karmapa’s director of finance Thupten Sherab guilty under FEMA of holding foreign exchange without legal authorization.”
On January 2011, Himachal Pradesh Police conducted a raid at the temporary residence of Karmapa – Gyuto Tantric Monastery at Sidhbari village – following arrest of two Indians entering the state with one Crore rupees (10 million). The duo told the police that they were carrying the money from New Delhi to be handed over to Rabgay Choesang, an employee working in Karmapa’s office.
The foreign currency recovered from the monastery was said to be monetary offerings made by devotees from all over the world including Tibetans in Tibet and Chinese Buddhists from mainland China. The same year, Himachal Pradesh government gave a clean chit to Karmapa as he had no links with the foreign currency and that the affairs of the trust are managed by trustees.
However, the ED ordered seizure of foreign currency of 26 countries.
The monastery did not have permission from the Reserve Bank of India to hold any foreign currency at the time of seizure. Therefore, Karmapa’s director of finance Thupten Sherab was held guilty under Section 4 of FEMA (holding of foreign exchange) and all the cash has been seized.
