Apurva / Indradyumna/ ISKCON Nepal 09 27 26

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PADA: Apurva and Kamalini evidently advised abuse victims not to sign up for the Windle Turley case, according to one of his ex-associates. It seems like protecting the regime is more important than protecting children for a lot of ISKCON folks. 

Evidently, one of the victims he blocked is now very angry and upset they never had their complaint vindicated. I don't think any of these GBC ilk people care about the long term results of suppressing the complaints of victims. 

Of course there are a pile of trauma experts all over ISKCON now to try to fix the damage, but the damage should not have been made from square one. The Windle Turley case gave some victims at least some voice and some closure, but the GBC loyalists do not want that, and it creates long lasting "non-closure" harmful effects on the victims. 

The only good news is this victim was not beaten and threatened to be silent. As it turns out, the predator was a child trained to be a predator in the Urmila GBC guru's schools system, just like a number of other kids were trained to be predators in her GBC system. 

If they wanted to hunt me and put me in the morgue, just imagine the pressure they put on children victims, who are totally defenseless from such diabolical coercion attacks. Of course this begs the question, is the GBC / Urmila program training people to become devotees of Krishna, or predators of children? Even the karmi media people ask me that, because it is a self evident issue.

ys pd 

angel108b@yahoo.com  

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INDRADYUMNA SWAMI ATTACKS MALCONTENTS

Scary rhetoric and abuse of power.

Here we see and hear Indradyumna Swami instructing his followers to ignore all social media raising questions about ISKCON's health and that of its leaders. The ascribed motive....? Simply malcontents trying to destroy ISKCON? "Close your ears to criticism - only hear glorification...." Video footage:

https://youtu.be/qALsFEW-R5Q

Hmmm. It turns out that many of the questions being asked and concerns being voiced revolve around Maharaja's frequent physical interactions with children. "Your concerns are not valid", we are repeatedly told. "Don't listen to these people" the disciples are told.

Even though the sannyasa ministry raised concerns and advised Maharaja to desist.... the behaviour evidently continues. Entire websites have been created with devotees describing that this is all normal and healthy - https://www.heart-of-indradyumna-swami.com/

Truly astonishing. And, of course, there will be backlash to this post - an indication that the prevailing instincts in many in the Society is to prop up the image of the "holy man" even at the cost of punishing whistleblowers and advocates.... and abandoning safeguards for children
Video footage:

https://youtu.be/qALsFEW-R5Q

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Child abuse allegations shake ISKCON’s Kathmandu centre

Aarya Chand / The Kathmandu Post

PADA: Oh oh someone told PADA the only reason the GBC has responded is that the issue has gone public. Otherwise, they never would have discussed it. Right, so they generally have to be forced to respond. Agreed. 

It looks like there is a cat fight going on among the Nepal leaders. Revati Ramana evidently said in public that the directors had been suspended, and then others said that is not the case. Who knows, but it is way out in public now. 

Another person says the abuse of children is a long standing problem in Nepal and this Patri guy needs to leave. OK but what about Mahavishnu swami, Jayapataka and others who are the overall overseers of the program? 

Why do they always get a free pass? The fact this cat fighting has gone public media looks to PADA like, the GBC's authority structure is collapsing in different areas. They can no longer keep a tight control over their troopers. ys pd

The religious organisation’s global leadership has suspended eight Nepal-based officials pending an inquiry, nearly five months after a family reported alleged abuse to police. The person accused of sexually abusing a girl remains at large.

Child abuse allegations shake ISKCON’s Kathmandu centre

Iskcon Nepal building and temple at Budhanilkantha, Kathmandu. Dipesh Darshandhari/TKP

Published at : September 22, 2026Updated at : September 23, 2026 06:33Kathmandu

When Samrat joined the International Society for Krishna Consciousness Gurukul in Kathmandu as a school bus driver, he believed he was serving a higher divine purpose. His wife joined him, serving at the institution’s restaurant as a cook, while both of their children were enrolled as students in the residential Gurukul—the Bhaktivedanta Gurukul Institute in Budhanilkantha, Kathmandu.

“I was completely dedicated, believing that bhakti—devotion—is everything,” said Samrat. At the family’s request, the Post is using pseudonyms to identify the father and the children to protect their privacy. “I didn’t have the slightest doubt that any harm or wrongdoing would come to my child at the institute,” Samrat added.

The school’s principal then, Suraj Krishna Shrestha, a devotee for more than 20 years, had two children of his own enrolled, Samrat said. “I thought, if they keep their own children here, how could anything bad happen to mine?” To Samrat, the man was a senior figure, a role model.

Samrat was in for a rude awakening when his young children reported they had endured physical violence, sexual abuse, and institutional neglect inside the religious boarding facility for years. His 13-year-old daughter said that she was subjected to sexual abuse by a staff member at the school for years. His five-year-old son reported that the principal himself routinely beat him and poked him with sharp pins.

The family filed an internal complaint with ISKCON’s global child protection office before approaching the police on April 30. Shrestha was arrested on charges of physical abuse and violence against children under the Children’s Act. Institutional cover-ups followed. Shrestha was later released on bail.

In Nepal, ISKCON’s centre in Budhanilkantha oversees both temple activities and boarding schools, where families entrust their children to live and study under the care of religious devotees and leaders. Dipesh Darshandhari/TKP

Founded in 1966, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, famously known as the Hare Krishna movement, is a global religious organisation operating hundreds of temples and Gurukuls—traditional residential religious schools. In Nepal, its centre in Budhanilkantha oversees both temple activities and boarding schools, where families entrust their children to live and study under the care of religious devotees and leaders.

What appeared to be an institutional willingness to probe the case came on September 14, when ISKCON’s global governing body commission suspended eight officials of its Nepal branch, including Shrestha, the former principal, nearly five months after the family went to the police.

The suspensions were announced in a letter posted on the website of ISKCON’s Child Protection Office Bharat and signed by two of the governing body’s zonal secretaries. It follows an internal fact-finding investigation into a whistle-blower complaint about the school. The eight are suspended from managerial, administrative and leadership duties pending an inquiry and disciplinary process, the letter states. It calls the measures precautionary and says no final determination of individual responsibility should be inferred. ISKCON Nepal’s President Pradeep Bhandari also says as much.

The family filed a complaint on April 30 at the District Police Range, Kathmandu, in Bhadrakali, alleging that their daughter, Shikha, now 13, was sexually abused at the Gurukul in Budhanilkantha between August 2021 and September 2022. She was able to speak about it only in mid-2025, when she told a female teacher at another school. Shikha’s father said she would sit staring blankly, unable to sleep, and cry or scream two or three times a day.

“I was very innocent back then,” Shikha told the Post. “I was completely unable to understand what was happening.” Ishwor Shrestha, a senior student who is named in the complaint as the alleged perpetrator, is absconding, the family says. Police have told them they have alerted Interpol and India’s Central Bureau of Investigation. But the fact that Ishwor has yet to prepare his citizenship document has hampered the search, Samrat said.

A police official at the District Police Range, Bhadrakali, confirmed to the Post that Ishwor’s citizenship document has not been made. Citing the ongoing case, the official declined to comment further. Samrat’s son, Hitesh, was 5 when he was punished in the school, the family says. “The principal beat me, poked me with pins and threatened me with punishment if I told my parents,” Hitesh told the Post.

On August 5, 2025, Samrat sent a complaint to ISKCON’s Child Protection Office Bharat. When that produced no result, he said, they went to the police about nine months later. The letter, signed by Governing Body Commission (GBC) Zonal Secretary Jayapataka Swami and Co-Zonal Secretary Revati Raman Das, said ISKCON’s Child Protection Oversight Committee received a whistle-blower complaint alleging serious child abuse, safeguarding failures, institutional misconduct and governance deficiencies at the Kathmandu school. The committee authorised the Child Protection Office Bharat to carry out an independent internal fact-finding review through external professionals.

A follow-up statement on September 17 from ISKCON’s Child Protection Oversight Committee said the investigation had concluded and raised leadership and management concerns beyond child protection bodies’ mandate. The complainants have also approached Nepal’s authorities and the legal process is ongoing. Internal adjudication by a review panel would follow only after that, and a local Child Protection Team for Nepal has been approved.

Bhandari, the ISKCON Nepal president, who is not among those suspended, insisted to the Post that the suspension should not be read as a finding after their investigation. “These eight individuals were listed not because they were found guilty,” he said.

Bhandari said the Child Protection Office has not shared its report or a summary with ISKCON Nepal. He also said there is discussion ongoing about how the letter came to carry Jayapataka Swami’s name, saying the Swami has been seriously ill for about three months and unable to speak, and that ISKCON Nepal has been unable to reach him.

“Regarding all these allegations of violence against children, we operate under a zero-tolerance policy,” Bhandari added. “We are always ready to support and stand in solidarity with legal procedures.”

Meanwhile, on Sunday, ISKCON Nepal’s General Assembly issued a press release calling the suspension notice “illegal and invalid.” It described Revati Raman Das, who signed the letter as GBC co-zonal secretary, as an Indian national serving as an advisor to its National Council. The statement demanded a written apology and clarification from Das within 24 hours. If he fails, it would ask him to resign as advisor and take the matter to the GBC. That deadline has now passed.

The General Assembly, however, has courted controversy. Acharya Ratna Das, a practicing devotee, told the Post he was not allowed inside the General Assembly hall on Sunday. He said an annual general meeting should be open even to non-devotees and the public. According to him, ISKCON’s constitution requires the meeting to be held about three months before the fiscal year ends but it was only recently organised, hence its legal validity is questionable. 

He also said the notice went out only about two weeks prior to the meeting, though 21 days are required, and the meeting was first set for Monday, then shifted to Sunday, a holiday. Das claimed this was done so resolutions could be passed without dissent.

Meanwhile, legal proceedings continue at the Kathmandu District Court in both cases: the child violence case against the former principal regarding the young boy, as well as the multi-year sexual abuse case involving the girl.

The court has scheduled October 5 to record the statements of the victims, their parents, and a key witness. Amid this, Samrat said that what the family wants is simple: for the GBC’s order to be followed. “I want this decision to be strictly enforced permanently,” he said. He said ISKCON Nepal’s leadership is resisting it and trying to “suppress us by any means.”

No one from ISKCON Nepal has contacted him directly since the notice, Samrat said. Earlier, third parties urged the family to reconcile, and colleagues accused him of acting for money or at others’ urging. “I don’t even have the financial capacity or money to hire a lawyer,” he said. “But remaining silent is not an option for us.”

Samrat said he still counts himself part of ISKCON. “I don’t say that ISKCON as a whole is damaged,” he said. “But my faith is already broken.” 

Aarya Chand

Aarya Chand is a reporter at The Kathmandu Post covering social issues. Before moving to the social beat, Chand was an intern covering culture and lifestyle for the Post.

https://kathmandupost.com/national/2026/09/22/child-abuse-allegations-shake-iskcon-s-kathmandu-centre?fbclid=IwY2xjawUkwj1leHRuA2FlbQIxMABwZG9mBWJyaWQRMXZXZmVwTk1rSmw2NGhFcGlzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEepx40yp9bLW0GRtZiBKFxn1MX6YfKde3tksozamyVe6qiPoGTYL9ZtKuuwMM_aem_jK3uMYio5BqKPzNkV9rxJg

CPO Bharat and CPOC continue to blunder child protection!

A few days ago I received a letter written by Kanai Sundar prabhu, a devotee from Nepal, where he is appealing to the devotee community for help. He describes the devastation that was brought upon the devotee children in Nepal by a visit from CPO Bharat. I wrote the following letter in reply and I added his letter at the bottom.

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Dear Vaishnavas,

Please accept my respectful obeisances. All Glories to Srila Prabhupada.

These letters bring me great sadness, not only because of what they reveal, but because what they reveal is so utterly unnecessary and preventable.

"These children are given to us by Krishna, they are Vaisnavas and we must be very careful to protect them. These are not ordinary children, they are Vaikuntha children, and we are very fortunate we can give them chance to advance further in Krishna Consciousness. That is very great responsibility, do not neglect it or be confused." (Letter to Arundhati dasa, July 30, 1972)

"These children are the future hope of our Society, so it is a very important matter how we are training them in Krishna consciousness from the very childhood." (Letter to Satsvarupa Maharaja, April 11, 1973)

While I am not familiar with the broader case, the contents of this letter alone are sufficient to draw the conclusion that this situation is a direct consequence of ISKCON's leadership disregarding the clear and simple instructions of Srila Prabhupada reported above.

Sadly the incidents described in this letter are not isolated and out of character, rather they constitute a continuum of a well established pattern of how the institution of ISKCON has handled child protection matters for the last 50 years.

Mark my words: the cumulative effect of the grievous Vaishnava aparadha committed and enabled by ISKCON's leadership through their continued and intentional disregard for Srila Prabhupada's instructions to protect and cherish devotee children, spanning generations, over the last fifty years, will cause incalculable damage to his legacy.

For as long as I can remember, the GBC's stance has been one in which the protection and best interests of children are treated as separate from, and less important than, the political interests of the institution. This vision lacks basic human decency, but it is also callous and shortsighted.

Setting aside spiritual considerations entirely for a moment, even if ISKCON's leadership had no interest whatsoever in spiritual life. Even if it were made up of hardened materialists whose sole interests were money, power, prestige, and followers; it would still make sound practical sense to ensure that the care and protection of children was a foremost priority.

If for no other reason, simply because neglecting their protection has the potential to destroy the entire institution. And yet, somehow, ISKCON's leaders have demonstrated that they lack even the foresight and basic prudence I would expect from such a heartless materialist.

Is it any wonder that ISKCON is struggling all over the world? And behind every institutional failure stands a child whose trust was broken, whose voice went unheard, and whose wound may last a lifetime.

What this letter makes painfully clear is twofold: first, that political motives have come to override the stated purpose of CPO Bharat and CPOC, making the protection of our Vaishnava children anything but their priority; and second, that neither body followed their own guidelines, which require them to employ qualified child protection professionals to carry out investigations. This oversight further damages their already compromised standing.

In this letter Kanai Sundar prabhu makes a very serious and concerning allegation; that CPO Bharat has used child protection to serve a political agenda. Not only are the investigators unqualified, but they brought a predetermined agenda and bias that can only cause further harm to the children.

There is something especially diabolical about the weaponization of child protection! To corrupt the one sanctuary that exists for the most vulnerable among us, to turn it into a political weapon, is a betrayal of the most sacred order. It is a desecration of the very principle of protection itself.

In short, this letter further confirms what has been evident to many for some time. Neither CPO Bharat nor CPOC possesses the professionalism or credibility required to adequately carry out the vital service of protecting children.

Credibility is a priceless currency, it cannot be demanded; it is earned through the integrity of one's conduct.

To date, neither body has demonstrated the necessary standard.

It is naive and reckless to hope or expect that a service as delicate as the protection of children can be carried out without the necessary credibility and good will of the Vaishnava community.

While a part of me feels a deep sense of hopelessness, I continue to believe that accountability must go hand in hand with a cry for Grace!

I pray that Krsna and Srila Prabhupada inspire the leadership of ISKCON to change their view of child protection, before another generation of Vaikuntha children pays the price of their indifference.

Aspiring to serve the Vaishnavas,

SR das

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Letter by Kanai Sundar das

My most revered Sri Srimad Jayapataka Swami Maharaja,

Dear GBC Members, Maharajas, and Respected Temple and Center Authorities,

Please accept my respectful obeisances. All glories to Sri Sri Guru and Gauranga. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

I write this letter with a heavy heart and a sense of urgency regarding a deeply troubling situation involving a child protection matter and its subsequent handling.

My name is Kanai Sundar das. I have been visiting ISKCON since 2002 and have been seriously practicing Krishna consciousness since 2007. I am an initiated disciple of HH Radhanath Swami (first initiation in 2019, second initiation in 2024). I have been engaged in pioneering preaching efforts in ISKCON Palpa and have served there in a leadership capacity.

Approximately 7–8 months ago, an adolescent girl in our congregation disclosed to my wife that she had been subjected to sexual harassment while at the Gurukula. In response, we responsibly involved the Child Protection Office (CPOC), and an external investigation process was initiated.

It is important to clarify that all interviews conducted during this process were facilitated transparently and with the knowledge and presence of ISKCON Budhanilkantha Temple authorities and Gurukula staff. There was also a female assistant present to support the process. At no point were individuals forcefully taken or interviewed without oversight, contrary to the allegations now being circulated.

During the course of this investigation, a highly alarming and deeply distressing incident occurred which I feel duty-bound to present with full seriousness.

While the CPO representatives were staying in accommodation arranged by ISKCON Budhanilkantha Temple authorities, they were suddenly confronted and surrounded by a large group—approximately 30–35 individuals—who entered and effectively confined them within the room. What followed was not a mere disagreement, but a situation of intimidation and coercion that created a genuine atmosphere of fear and danger.

They were pressured, recorded against their will, and attempts were made to force statements and signatures on blank documents. Their investigative materials, including sensitive recordings, were taken from them. In the course of these events, we later came to understand that at least one individual required medical attention and had to be rushed to the hospital.

It was observed that among those present in the room were the principal accused, Sundar Gopal das and Divya Radhika Mataji. Also present were temple authorities, including Mahaprabhu Kripa das (Temple President), Kantish Sharma, Bhanubhakta Joshi, Rama Jivan Kanaiya das, and Krishna Tulasi, along with a large group of individuals.

The atmosphere in the room was highly charged and aggressive. Krishna Tulasi was seen shouting and using harsh, abusive language, while others actively surrounded and pressured the investigators. The group collectively attempted to influence the process—pressuring the investigators to make statements and prepare reports favorable to them.

Most concerningly, one of the external investigators later conveyed that some individuals present appeared to be carrying knives, which were concealed when there was an indication that police intervention was imminent.

During this incident, one of the investigators managed to discreetly send me a message from within the room. Upon receiving this, we immediately contacted the police and personally intervened at the location. By Krishna’s mercy, we were able to assist in securing their release and ensured their safe exit from Nepal, escorting them overnight to India.

I submit this with a heavy heart: this was not merely obstruction—it was an incident that placed the safety and well-being of those involved in serious jeopardy, and it has left a lasting impact on all who were connected to it.

I was given clear assurances by CPOC and CPO Bharat that:

* I would be protected as a whistleblower

* My identity would remain confidential

* I would not face personal or legal risk

However, the current situation reflects the opposite. Material in which I appeared has been handled in such a way that my identity has effectively been exposed. As a result, I am now facing social hostility, being labeled as disloyal, and subjected to public disrespect.

Additionally, I am now being summoned by the police under allegations that are deeply distressing and appear to contradict the coordinated efforts that were previously agreed upon between CPO, CPOC, GBC representatives, and ISKCON Budhanilkantha Temple authorities.

I respectfully submit that instead of protection being extended, I am experiencing vulnerability and isolation.

In light of these developments, I humbly request the following:

1. Clarification and confirmation of my status and protection as a whistleblower in this case.

2. Immediate steps to ensure my personal safety and legal protection.

3. A transparent and impartial review of the events surrounding the obstruction of the investigation.

4. Accountability for those who engaged in intimidation, coercion, and interference with the investigative process.

5. Clear guidance on whether I may safely visit the temple and continue my devotional practices without fear or hostility.

I also respectfully seek to understand whether the Child Protection Office and GBC intend to actively uphold their responsibility in this matter. The current silence and lack of visible action are deeply concerning and difficult to reconcile with the principles we are meant to stand for.

This situation is not only about an individual case—it directly impacts the trust in our institutional commitment to protecting vulnerable individuals and upholding justice within our society.

I remain your servant, and I place this matter at your feet with the hope that truth, protection, and accountability will prevail.

Yours in service,

Kanai Sundar das