Karnataka High Court declines to quash Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act case against associates of US-based Christian missionary organisation The Timothy Initiative
The High Court of Karnataka declined to interfere with a criminal case registered against six persons associated with U.S.-based Christian missionary organisation The Timothy Initiative
The High Court of Karnataka declined to interfere with a criminal case registered against six persons associated with U.S.-based Christian missionary organisation The Timothy Initiative (TTI) under provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA) for illegally using foreign-issued debit cards to withdraw and channel funds in India’s Left Wing Extremism (LWE)-affected areas bypassing regulatory mechanisms. On July 1, Justice M. Nagaprasanna passed the order while dismissing petitions filed by Micah Mark, Jonathan S. Rajan, Ajit Verghese Mathai, Varghese Chacko, Bablu Kurmi, and Supreme Joy, all associated with the TTI. The petitioners had challenged the legality of the First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Kothanur police in Bengaluru city on June 11, 2026 against the petitioners and TTI, following an Enforcement Directorate (ED) complaint alleging the accused illegally used foreign-issued debit cards to channel and withdraw funds in India for TTI, bypassing regulatory mechanisms.
The ED contended that the alleged movement of foreign funds into sensitive and Left Wing Extremism (LWE)-affected areas without regulatory compliance constituted unlawful activity under the UAPA. The ED further alleged that the funds could have been used to support activities detrimental to national security and public order. According to the complaint, when ED searched multiple locations on April 18 and 19, 2026, under provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999, c The ED alleged that foreign debit cards issued by banks in the United States were distributed and used across India to withdraw cash from ATMs, bypassing regulatory mechanisms.
Investigators claim that nearly ₹92.55 crore (approximately $9.99 million) was utilised through such transactions between November 2025 and April 2026, while around ₹44 crore was withdrawn between January 2024 and March 2026 across Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Assam and other States. According to the complaint, several of the transactions occurred in LWE-affected regions, particularly in Chhattisgarh. Investigators suspect that the funds were routed
through a network of operatives, and distributed using foreign debit cards allegedly issued under fictitious identities. During the searches, officials reportedly found multiple foreign debit cards and financial records. The complaint also alleges that digital records and data connected to the transactions were remotely deleted from servers controlled from the United States after the investigation commenced, amounting to destruction of evidence.
The BriefWire