"Stripped me and my wife and interrogated us": Indian Orthodox Church bishop with allegation that ED officials demanded two crore bribe

KOLLAM: Bishop James George of the Kollam-based Bharatiya Orthodox Church has come forward with an allegation that officials of the ED Kochi office demanded a bribe of two crore rupees to settle a case of disproportionate assets. The ED official is alleged to have demanded the money directly and later through intermediaries.

The bishop's argument is as follows:

"The ED had registered a case against me for amassing wealth beyond my means through the Modern Group, a company that runs educational courses. The case was registered on the basis that the Rs 2.5 crore taken as a bank loan was an investment. My wife's and my properties were seized. A year ago, an officer in the ED office had demanded a bribe of Rs 2 crore from me. Two senior officials made it clear that they wanted what they had asked for without accepting any of the documents submitted. They stripped me and my wife and interrogated us in the Kochi office. The middlemen told me that I would have to pay the money in four instalments. They demanded that I pay at least Rs 25 lakh as the first instalment."

James George said that he had already filed a complaint with the ED Director and the CBI. James George, who ran the Modern Group of Institutions based in Kollam Kadappakada, formed the Indian Orthodox Church in 2010 and rose to the position of bishop.

Those who claimed to be agents were caught earlier

The Kollam East police had arrested two people nine months ago who approached posing as agents of ED officials. Thiruvalla native Vipin. P. Varghese (39) and Alappuzha native Binoy (41) were arrested.

On July 12, 2024, a person called James George over the phone and asked him to come to a hotel in Thrissur, saying that an officer from the Ernakulam unit had sent him. When James George reached there, the man introduced himself as an ED official and demanded Rs 2 crore to end the investigation. He said that an advance of Rs 25 lakh should be given and that he would inform the place and time. The two men reached Kollam on the morning of August 24, 2024. They sent a picture of a Rs 100 note on WhatsApp.

The caller said that two people were in a hotel near the railway station and that James George should pay Rs 25 lakhs if he showed them a photo of Rs 100 on the phone. The police arrived as per the information provided by James George. The accused, who tried to escape after seeing the police, were chased and arrested. Three other accomplices were also arrested in the case.