Lie No.1

Our latest stories detailing confirmations of payments to HK (Please see previous stories 'HS states that HK already given $500,00; and 'HK given $250,000 as 'pension'') now provide evidence that the GBC's denials and statements mean nothing. We had earlier been issued the following pious assurance from our leaders just 6 days ago:

"GBC Executive Statement. 29th. August 1998.

This situation has been further complicated by the question concerning the funds of the Visva Tosani Foundation, which Harikesa das has demanded from ISKCON, in some cases with threats and menaces. Due to concerns expressed by a number of GBC members, this situation has been investigated and the funds have been secured. It has been decided not to release any of these funds at this time pending further investigation and discussion and the whole GBC body will make the decision on this matter."


However as our stories how shown, the reality is that:


"Our Foundation has 12 Trustees and we decided to give him $250,000 to buy a house at a time when he was very sick and still not so far gone philosophically. We thought this would be a kind of pension for his retirement. We thought this was fair for someone who gave so much to ISKCON for 30 years." (Statement from Trustee of Visva Tosani fund)

"He had already been given $500,000 in the form of a couple of vehicles and some cash." (Statement from His Grace Hari Sauri Prabhu, sent to Germany to help 'negogiate')

Clearly funds have been payed to HK from the Visva Tosani fund. The GBC do not admit to this.

Lie No. 2

We had also been assured that:

"ISKCON sources say they have not heard of any such public reports, nor have there been any internal reports of a connection with a 'Russian Mafia"
(Statement from CHAKRA)

Yet Hari Sauri prabhu's report told us yesterday that:

"The Russians had also made threats to ***** and ***** that the money was actually theirs (it originally came from Prema Invest in Russia) [...] He jumped in his car and yelled to Brahmananda Puri (the main Russian mafioso who runs Prema Invest) "They are cheating me! [...] B. Puri told us the money was his, and if it was not given to HK he would kill us all. He said he would get the Mafia and all of us would be killed."

Here we have Hari Sauri prabhu telling us that the disputed funds in the Visva Tosani fund actually came from a fund run by the Russian mafia.


These revelations raise the following concerns:

1) How can we trust at all now what the GBC are telling us. Unlike the IRG who have no access to information and are thus totally reliant on 'leaks' and 'informants' in the GBC who may sometimes supply us false or inaccurate information, the GBC and powers that be have no such excuse. They should and DO know what's going on. This merely raises the question of how much we still do not know. Who knows how much HK has really been given, and what is really going on? Is the GBC continuing to cover-up like it has been infamous for the last 21 years? We only found out the above information through a mixture of luck and providence. Clearly we are only scratching the surface here.

2) What is the legality of these payments? Surely a trust must obey the rules of the trust document. Does the trust document allow for 'lump sum' 'executive pension' plans to be set up for other trustees? This would be highly irregular for any trust. A trust is usually set-up so that any individuals can not benefit themselves, what to speak of the trustees. We appreciate that 'menaces and threats' may have been made, but ANY payments at all are still illegal unless explicitly allowed for by the terms of the trust. We would seriously request the GBC to 'come clean' before the authorities begin to make their own investigations.

3) But the biggest shock to come out of these revelations is the admission that HK was given large sums of money as a 'pension' since 'he gave so much to ISKCON'. What about the thousands of other devotees who also have done massive amounts of service who are now struggling on welfare or are sick and have no means of support? How are they going to feel about this 'revelation'? Especially single mothers who after having given the best years of their life to the movement, now find that while they struggle in abject poverty, others get 'executive pensions' for THEIR service. This raises the question of what about all the other 'gurus' who are now in supposedly 'good standing'. If they decide to deviate or 'retire' are we also going to give them 'executive pension' plans as well? Every one of them has the ability to 'blow the whistle' and give 'threats and menaces', and they also can claim to have done 'so much for ISKCON'. Simultaneously we also have the GBC telling us that:

"Harikesa das has taken an oath of allegiance to ISKCON, a practice that Srila Prabhupada established. The oath states that any funds or property acquired by an individual acting in their capacity as an officer of the society, remain the sole property of ISKCON at all times, and the individual has no claim whatsoever. A long standing ISKCON law also establishes that guru-daksina is not the personal property of any spiritual master but that it is the property of ISKCON." (GBC Executive Committee Statement, 29/8/98)

So by their own rules where is the scope to make 'pension' payments to ANYONE?

Finally we have heard that H.G. Hari Sauri prabhu is in serious trouble with the GBC for his frank and brave revelation. We would like to commend Hari Sauri Prabhu for his honesty, and to tell him that the IRG will provide him with shelter and backing if he does encounter any such trouble. This also goes for anyone else who is fearful for their position if they reveal the truth.
However we are sure that having stood up to the might of the Russian Mafia, Hari Sauri prabhu has nothing to fear from the GBC!