HP drops Karmapa's name from charge sheet in currency case

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In a relief to Tibetan religious leader Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje, the Himachal Pradesh government has decided to drop his name from the charge sheet in the foreign and Indian currency recovery case.

26-year-old Karmapa was charged under section 120-B for conspiracy along with nine others who were charged under different sections of IPC including 419 (punishment for cheating by personation), 420 (cheating) and 467 (forgery of valuable security), in the challan filed by police in a Una court.

The government, in exercise of its power under section 321 (withdrawal of prosecution) of CrPC, decided to delete the name of Karmapa from the charge sheet after getting the matter examined by the Home and Law departments, an official spokesman said on Tuesday.

Police had recovered currencies of 26 countries, including 120,197 Chinese yuan and around Rs.5. 3 million in Indian currency, from the Gyuto Tantric University and Monastery located on the outskirts of Dharamsala, the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile on January 28 2011.

The raids were made following seizure of Rs.1 crore from a jeep by Una Police on the interstate border and during investigations it was revealed that the money was meant for purchase of land for the Karmapa Trust.

Soon after the charge sheet was filed in the court, Karmapa had a moved an application through the district Magistrate, Una, urging the government to drop his name from the charge sheet and maintained that he was only head of the Gyuto Tantric University and Monastery and had nothing to do with its day-to-day affairs and financial transactions.

The government directed the District Magistrate, Una to move the matter in the court through Public Prosecutor for deleting the name of Karmapa from the charge sheet.

The police had filed the charge sheet in the court on December 7, 2011 and the chief judicial magistrate, Una had summoned the Karmapa and nine other accused to be personally present before it on March 6, but the Karmapa failed to appear.

The government also maintained that Karmapa was an esteemed religious leader of Tibetans with vast following and charging him with conspiracy could hurt religious sentiments of the people and even create a law and order situation.

Karmapa is the spiritual head of the Karma Kagyu school, one of the four sects of Tibetan Buddhism. He joined Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, in exile in 2000.