Bengaluru: Based on a complaint filed by officials from the Directorate of Enforcement (ED), city police have registered a criminal case against US-based Christian missionary organisation The Timothy Initiative (TTI) and six individuals from Bengaluru and other parts of the country, on alleged charges of funding the spread of Naxalism and religious conversion using around Rs 95 crore.The complaint was filed by Sunil Kumar Sinhmar of the ED (New Delhi) at Kothanur police station. The case has been registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA) and relevant sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.The ED complaint alleges that the accused organisation bypassed Indian financial regulations and foreign contribution laws by using a network of foreign debit cards. More than 1,000 foreign-issued debit cards were allegedly distributed across India, with multiple cards operating under the name “Santosh Kumar”.Investigators found that an estimated Rs 92.5 crore to Rs 95 crore was channelled and utilised through these transactions between Nov 2025 and April 2026. An additional Rs 44 crore was withdrawn using similar methods between Jan 2024 and March 2026.The funds are also being investigated for their deployment in TTI’s multi-level “church planting” and religious outreach models targeting vulnerable populations in these tribal and conflict-prone belts, the complaint stated.Prima facie evidence revealed that large-scale cash withdrawals were being routed into left-wing extremism-affected areas such as Bastar and Dhamtari districts in Chhattisgarh, a senior police officer told TOI.Investigators are scrutinising whether these funds were diverted to fuel Naxal operations, conversion, and unlawful activity. The accused named by cops are Jonathan S Rajan from Glorio Apartments-Doddagubbi Road, Ajit Verghese Mathai from Kothanur, Micah Mark of Yadava Layout (intercepted at Bengaluru airport with 24 foreign debit cards), Supreme Joy from Mysuru, Varghese Chacko from Chhattisgarh, and Bablu Kurmi from Assam.The FIR also mentions the alleged destruction of electronic evidence, specifically claiming that a backend database account was deleted by one of the accused to conceal financial tracking.
