Andhra Pradesh - Visakhapatnam

Donations: ISKCON cautions public

VISAKHAPATNAM: The local chapter of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) has cautioned the public against offering donations to unscrupulous persons claiming to be authorized by ISKCON Bangalore. ISKCON chapter president Samba Das said that unauthorised persons were seeking donations from people for the ISKCON midday meal programme ‘Akshay Patra’. “The ISKCON midday meal scheme is a government-sponsored programme. The donations are only a way to cheat the public,” he said.

As per the rules set up by ISKCON, any person who wants to undertake any activity in the name of or on behalf of ISKCON in any city must take prior permission from the president of the local branch. However, no such permissions were taken from the local branch, he said. “Madhu Pandit Das, president of the Bangalore ISKCON branch, is behind this fraudulent activity and collecting funds and misleading donors and the public,” he alleged.

Mr. Samba Das clarified that the local chapter of ISKCON was “not associated in any ways with this”. Speaking about the future activities of ISKCON, he said that the local branch would shortly start their midday meal scheme for 20,000 children from January next year.

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