Kerala's Believers Church under scanner for huge foreign fund flow

The Kerala-based Believers Church, which is now facing Income Tax raids, has been under the scanner for quite some time owing to the huge foreign fund flow.

It has been one of the top foreign funds receiving NGOs in Kerala for many years and is also allegedly involved in massive real estate trade using the funds received on account of charity.

While Income Tax sources said that Pathanamthitta district- headquartered Believers Church and its associate NGOs received Rs. 6,000 crore foreign funds over the last five to ten years, as per data available from FCRA wing of Ministry of Home Affairsl Believers Church received Rs. 906 crore during the 2016-17 fiscal alone. Ayana Charitable Trust, which is believed to be associated with the Believers Church, was the top recipient with Rs. 1,091 crores during the fiscal.

The Income Tax officials conducted searches at around 60 premises associated with the Believers Church over the last few days. Apart from the headquarters, a medical college and several other institutions of the church, offices, and residences of many prominent real estate dealers and some business persons, who are suspected to be benamis, were also raided.

Around Rs. 3.5 crore has been reportedly recovered from a car parked in the garage of the headquarter. There were allegations that a senior official of the church tried to damage his mobile phone, while another staff tried to damage a pen drive while the IT search was going on.

Sources said that Believers Church founder and metropolitan bishop Dr. K P Yohannan, who is reportedly not in India, would be issued notice by the IT officials soon.

Believers Church public relations official Fr. Sijo Panthapally said that the allegations doing the rounds are baseless. The IT officials said that the ongoing verification may take at least two months. The church would fully cooperate with it and take required corrective measures.

The Church allegedly has a high influence among political leaders in Kerala. No inquiry took place so far despite the allegations it faced. The Cheruvally estate close to Sabarimala Ayyappa temple where the Kerala government proposed the Sabarimala airport project was involved in an ownership dispute with the Believers Church. There were allegations that the move was aimed at appreciating the real estate value of the large extent of land possessed by the church in the locality.