The police and revenue officials questioned the Karmapa Lama, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, for the second day in succession on the source of the huge stacks of currency found inside his Sidhbari (Dharamsala) based abode as well as suggestions of a possible China connection.
Even as officers quizzed the young monk over nearly two hours on Sunday afternoon, other Himachal Pradesh police teams moved in to arrest Dharamsala businessman Kul Prakash Bhardwaj and the manager of the Ambala branch of Corporation Bank D.K. Dhar. The two have purportedly been picked up in connection with “dubious land deals” involving Tibetan money.
Additional police superintendent G.K. Kapoor, who was among the officers who questioned the Karmapa, said the Tibetan spiritual leader’s responses were “not satisfactory.” He said, “We are not satisfied with the information we have been provided. We may need to question him further.”
According to the officer, the Karmapa denied any knowledge about the currency including more than `11 lakh worth of Chinese Yuan. The money, in 25 different international currencies, was seized from the office of his aide, Rubgi Chosang during the police raids on Thursday evening.
The Karmapa told the police the money was from offerings made by devotees which was entirely handled by the accounts people on his staff. Though refusing to share specific details, the police sources said they were concerned about the possible involvement of the Karmapa’s own Karmae Garchen Trust in allegedly dubious land deals.
More than three days into the current crisis, the Karmapa was visibly more confident with the Dalai Lama’s backing and the arrival of friends, including Sikkim’s Karma Thopden and senior Supreme Court lawyers from Delhi.
For the first time, responding to allegations referring to him as a “Chinese spy” and “possessing illegal money” through Karma Thopden, who is spokesperson of the Karmapa Reception Committee in Sikkim, the Karmapa said he has “not done anything while in India in any way to undermine and harm the interest of India. India is his second home and he is happy here. He looks forward to India becoming a powerful and prosperous nation. He has no intention in any way of undermining anything against the interest of India.”
Meanwhile, several other voices of support have also risen. A followers in Europe suggested the cash seizures were possibly part of the collections from devotees including at two major events were recently held in Bodh Gaya — the Kagyu Monlam (the Karmapa heads the Karma Kagyu school of Buddhism), and the 900th anniversary of the Karmapa’s lineage.
“Several thousand foreigners, including Chinese, Taiwanese, others, attended; the Karmapa has thousands of devotees in Asia and across the globe. It is customary for offerings to be made by devotees and given the significance of these occasions and devotion to the Karmapa, large donations were made in foreign currency and later taken back to Gyuto for processing,” said Kate Saunders from the United Kingdom.