Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The board of the Takht Sachkhand Sri Hazur Sahib Gurdwara in Nanded has suspended five staff members and ordered a departmental inquiry after one of them allegedly misappropriated Rs 50,000 meant as a donation on February 13.
FIR Filed Against Sevadar
The Wazirabad police on April 20 lodged an FIR under sections 316 (5) and 318 (4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against sevadar Ramandeep Singh Bhullar based on a complaint by gurdwara superintendent Ravindra Singh Kapoor (57). Kapoor's complaint stated that the incident occurred between 10 am and 4 pm on February 13, when Bhullar was posted at the donation counter at gate no. 1, accepting offerings from devotees.
Devotee Duped into Transferring Funds
A devotee from Indore, Ragbir Singh, approached Bhullar to donate Rs 51,000 online. Police said Bhullar allegedly misled him, claiming that the official swipe machine and e-golak system were not operational. He directed Singh to transfer the amount to his personal bank account using his private mobile number and issued a receipt.
Singh grew suspicious and raised the matter with another gurdwara staffer the same day. Discrepancies were found in the carbon copy of the receipt upon verification. The amount was shown as Rs 1,000 instead of Rs 51,000 initially, with signs of overwriting.
Reconciliation Reveals Shortfall
During the end-of-day reconciliation, Bhullar allegedly failed to account for the full amount collected. While the total collection stood at Rs 76,050, he reportedly submitted only Rs 25,350 to cashier Ajitpal Singh Shahu and kept the remaining amount.
Gurdwara Administrator's Statement
Gurdwara administrator Dr. Vijay Satbeer Singh told TOI: "We have suspended Bhullar and four other seniors present during the shift at the time of the incident. The four people are accused of helping the suspect by either omission or commission. We are carrying out a departmental inquiry and an audit will be done to ascertain the scale of the total misappropriation, which may be big."
Officials said an internal inquiry had earlier found Bhullar guilty, following which he had deposited Rs 50,000 with the gurdwara board. Police said further investigation is underway, while the gurdwara management has initiated parallel administrative and financial scrutiny.
