After going through the shocking News clip shown on Iskcon Mumbai Engages Blackmailer to Defame Iskcon Bangalore, several questions rise up. The conversation is between Balaji Subhash, a professional blackmailer who does so called “sting” operations and extorts the victims for his living, against whom the CID (Crime Investigation Department, to whom the regular Police Deparment hand over tough and complicated cases) has taken up the case, and Varada Krishna Dasa, who is the President of ISKCON Bengaluru – the Bangalore branch of ISKCON Mumbai where His Holiness Jayapataka Swami is worshipped as “guru”. It may be recalled that this branch was set up by Jayapataka Swami with the approval of the GBC in 1999 when His Grace Madhu Pandit prabhu started questioning the authority of the self appointed gurus. Varada Krishna Dasa is the President of this branch, appointed by the GBC. Hence he is a responsible, appointed officer of the branch of ISKCON Mumbai.
In this audio clip, Varada Krishna Dasa is encouraging the professional blackmailer to make “money nicely”. How? By telling Madhu Pandit Prabhu that ISKCON Mumbai has offered him Rs 2.5 Million for some video clips. So this responsible officer appointed by the GBC is teaching a professional blackmailer to earn more money, by blackmailing another ISKCON Temple President. Varada Krishna Dasa must be doing this:
Either with the approval of the GBC: In which case, it shows the whole GBC in very poor light. Is this the moral – I repeat, moral, not even spiritual – standard of the highest ecclesiastical body of ISKCON? Is this the standard Srila Prabhupada wanted the “ultimate managing authority” to set for the movement? If they accept their complicity in this dastardly act, then the GBC immediately becomes a prime suspect of complicity in the other major ills that have ravaged ISKCON – be it the murder of Sulochana Prabhu or the child abuses or exploitation of women devotees. The entire GBC must stand down and ask the ISKCON body of devotees to elect an entirely new GBC, if it has to atone for this major sinful act and aparadh against the Deities, against Srila Prabhupada and a Vaishnava. Varada Krishna Dasa has practically guided a blackmailer how to loot the temple’s money – which belongs only to the Deities and Srila Prabhupada. Hence he has committed a direct offense against Them. He has also committed
Vaishnava Aparadh by plotting to defame an innocent Vaishnava. For all these offenses, he shares the consequences with the GBC. Hence the GBC must step down and tender an apology to the entire society for its heinous act in endangering the Deities and Srila Prabhupada, as also a Vaishnava.
Or, without the approval of the GBC: In which case, Varada Krishna Dasa takes the entire responsibility for the sins and offenses committed. But in this scenario, if the GBC does not want to partake of the fruits of the seeds of sins and offenses sown by Varada Krishna Dasa, they should immediately remove Varada Krishna Dasa from his post of President and make him tender an unconditional apology to the entire society for his utmost degraded act. If the GBC does not do so, then they will still anyway become responsible along with Varada Krishna Dasa for the consequences of his actions. Apart from that, the GBC will also set a precedent for other Temple Presidents to follow – hire a professional blackmailer to loot another temple, if you are envious of that Temple President. Is this the example that the GBC wants to set for the leaders of the movement?
Have the GBC lost their senses? Is this the standard of the leaders of ISKCON today? If so, it is very appalling and frightening. Imagine an ISKCON infested with leaders trying to hire professional blackmailers against each other! What the GBC wants to convey to the devotees, only their actions on this criminal act of Varada Krishna Dasa will tell.