New Delhi: The Supreme Court has ordered the constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) under the supervision of the Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary to probe alleged fraudulent sale and transfer of properties belonging to the Spiritual Regeneration Movement Foundation of India, a society founded under the guidance of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
A Bench of Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Atul S. Chandurkar passed the directions while setting aside an interim order of the Allahabad High Court, which had restrained the filing of a police report under Section 193(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) in connection with FIR No. 642 of 2025 registered at Noida Sector 39 police station.
The apex court directed the Investigating Officer to complete the probe and submit the police report in accordance with law, holding that the Allahabad High Court was not justified in staying the filing of the charge sheet while entertaining a petition challenging the FIR.
“In our view, the Court can exercise the discretion for not taking coercive steps till the matter is pending, but the direction not to file the charge sheet… is wholly unjust,” the Justice Maheshwari-led Bench observed.
The top court said it was “a matter of concern” that despite multiple civil and criminal proceedings pending across several states over the society’s properties, the alleged unauthorised sale of lands continued unabated.
The Justice Maheshwari-led Bench recorded that several FIRs had been registered in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, alleging forgery, cheating and illegal transfer of society land by rival groups claiming control over the organisation.
According to the Supreme Court, disputes over the management of the society were also reflected in the Registrar of Societies’ records, which showed two separate lists of office bearers.
Directing the constitution of an SIT, the Justice Maheshwari-led bench ordered that the Registrar of Societies be included as one of its members to identify lands belonging to the society and examine how properties were allegedly alienated or transferred to third parties without authorisation.
“The fact-finding enquiry be conducted with respect to the lands already sold by any person other than the original office bearers of the society,” the apex court directed, adding that the SIT report should be handed over to the police concerned within three months for further action wherever fraudulent conduct and criminal intent are found.
The apex court clarified that until the SIT submits its report and the investigation is completed, no coercive action shall be taken against Raghvendra Pratap Singh, while directing all accused persons to cooperate with the SIT and the investigators.
“It is made clear that the SIT shall deal with all the people at par uninfluenced by unknown force and to maintain the rule of law,” the Justice Maheshwari-led Bench said.
The Supreme Court further said that after the death of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, it was never intended that disputes between rival groups would result in valuable society properties being sold “for their own interest contrary to the purpose and object” of the organisation.
“It was also not intended by him that despite pendency of litigation on the civil and criminal side, the office bearers of the society shall not have any fear and will continuously be involved in selling the property,” the top court remarked.
The Justice Maheshwari-led Bench clarified that it had not expressed any opinion on the merits of the allegations and that the SIT would independently examine all aspects before submitting its report to the Allahabad High Court in connection with pending proceedings.
(IANS)
