Behind the Yoga Mat: How Baba Ramdev acquired lands worth crores through his shell companies
'Reporters Collective's investigative report unravels startling facts
This report is a summary/aggregation copy of a investigative report published by 'Reporters Collective' on November 22, 2023. The original story was authored by Shreegireesh Jalihal and Tapasya, both reporters of Reporters Collective. The report was edited by Editor of Reporters Collective, Anoop George Philip. You can read the original report by clicking here.
New Delhi: According to a recent report by 'Reporters Collective,' the popular perception of Baba Ramdev as a yoga guru with a focus on spiritual well-being takes a different turn in the forested village of Mangar in the Aravalli Range, near Delhi. Here, he is recognized as a significant player in the real estate sector.
The report reveals that Baba Ramdev, through his various companies, has acquired land parcels in Mangar. A local realty dealer, preferring anonymity, stated, "Babaji bought parcels of land in Mangar through his companies. There are different companies that bought land here, and we know they are all Babaji’s because the dealers involved in the purchase are locally known to be working for him."
In a continuation of the investigation by 'Reporters Collective,' it has been affirmed that the realty dealer's claim holds merit. The collective's findings indicate a network of shell and obscure companies associated with the Patanjali group, primarily controlled by Baba Ramdev's younger brother and close business associates. Over the past decade, these entities have been actively involved in buying and selling lands in Mangar, situated in Haryana's Faridabad.
The Indian government, acknowledging the potential misuse of shell companies, stated in Parliament in February of this year that it has taken action against over 1.2 lakh such entities in the last three years. These companies failed to file their financial statements with the government, reflecting a broader effort to curb illicit financial activities and ensure transparency.
The investigation by 'Reporters Collective' unveiled revelationed certain companies associated with the Patanjali group managed to elude government scrutiny. Contrary to their official claims of engaging in the production and sale of goods, these Patanjali-affiliated shell firms, identified in the report, were found to be inactive in their purported businesses.
Instead, these shell companies were strategically employed by the Patanjali group to acquire extensive land holdings in Mangar, a vital forested village in the Aravalli mountain range, often referred to as the lungs of Delhi. The proceeds from the sale of lands in Mangar were then channeled back through these shell entities to other firms within the Patanjali empire. This intricate financial maneuvering enabled the conglomerate to further expand its land acquisitions, extending its influence to other parts of the Aravalli hills, the report added.
The investigation carried out by 'Reporters Collective' spanned corporate and land records covering more than a decade and a half. This unveiled the web of dubious shell companies and established a clear connection between these entities and the ultimate buyers of land—the Patanjali empire.
Baba Ramdev, the face of the Patanjali group, concurrently built up this business empire while ardently supporting Narendra Modi's commitment to eradicate black money. During the period from 2011 to 2014, he actively campaigned for Modi and championed the anti-corruption movement led by Anna Hazare.
The allure of Mangar and other regions in the Aravalli hills for real estate players is explained by their strategic location. Faridabad, home to Mangar, is a part of the National Capital Region, a hub of burgeoning cities that provides fertile ground for builders. Notably, large tracts of forestlands in Faridabad have been kept outside the purview of conservation laws, creating lucrative opportunities for real estate players such as the Patanjali group led by Baba Ramdev, the report further added.
“But between the wood and the axe of real estate developers stood the Supreme Court order that aimed to protect unprotected forested lands like parts of Aravalli. Under the landmark 1996 order of the court, whether a government recognised a patch of land as forest or not in its records, if it met the dictionary definition of a forest, it would be protected regardless of who owned the forest patch.
“Over the years, Mangar and the unprotected parts of Aravallis close to Delhi have been playing cat and mouse with the businessman out to snap up the forested land,” the report stated.
While Patanjali had acquired land in Mangar prior to the BJP assuming power in Haryana and at the national level, documents scrutinized by 'Reporters Collective' indicate that the post-2014 period, under the respective governments, has created a more favorable environment for the group's business ventures in the Aravalli ranges.
Recent developments have added to Baba Ramdev's optimism, as in August 2023, the Union government implemented changes that effectively weakened the protective measures laid out by the apex court. Specifically, the amendment to the Forest Conservation Act removed legal safeguards for forested lands, including those in Mangar and other parts of the Aravalli.
This alteration in legislation is significant, as it exposes extensive expanses of land in the Aravalli, which were not officially designated as forests, to potential commercial exploitation. The amended Forest Conservation Act has already been identified as a boon for several real estate firms, including those that own land in the forests of the Aravallis, as reported by Hindustan Times.
A thorough examination of the most recent digital land records of Haryana and corporate filings reveals that the Patanjali group, through a network of a dozen companies and a trust, holds sway over more than 123 acres of land in Mangar village.
It's important to note that this figure may be a conservative estimate, as the investigation couldn't definitively establish the full extent of the Patanjali Group's real estate dealings in Mangar at the time of publication. The challenge arises from the delayed updating of land records following the sale of land.
Illustration: Patanjali firms and trust that have land in Mangar as per the latest available Haryana digital land records. (image credit: Reporters Collective)
In an attempt to gain clarity on the intricate web of companies involved in the Mangar land transactions, 'Reporters Collective' sent detailed questionnaires to the registered emails of these entities. The queries were also directed to S K Tijarawala, Chief Operating Officer of Patanjali Ayurved Limited and spokesperson for Baba Ramdev, along with Acharya Balakrishna. Tijarawala is additionally the National Head of Aastha TV.
Despite reminders, only a third of the entities provided uniform, copy-and-pasted responses. The remaining entities chose not to respond. Notably, the shell companies, in their boilerplate replies, consistently copied the Patanjali Ayurved COO and Tijarawala, reinforcing the connection between these entities and Ramdev's Patanjali group. This correspondence emphasizes that these companies are not independent entities merely run by Ramdev's friends and family; rather, they explicitly report to the Patanjali group.
In response to the allegations, the entities asserted a concise and straightforward position: they claim to have committed no wrongdoing.
The investigative findings by 'Reporters Collective' unveil a consistent modus operandi employed by Patanjali's shell firms in the acquisition of plots across Mangar. In one such case, the Collective traced the flow of funds and their utilization within Patanjali Corrupack Private Limited, shedding light on how these financial transactions were orchestrated to buy and sell land in the Mangar forests.
The inception of Patanjali Corrupack Private Limited dates back to 2009 when Baba Ramdev's brother, Ram Bharat, and his closest business associate, Acharya Balkrishna, co-founded the company. They asserted that the purpose of establishing Corrupack was to engage in the manufacturing of packaging material. Both individuals collectively contributed Rs 1 lakh as capital, and the company was registered in Haridwar, Uttarakhand, Ramdev's home ground. According to the latest corporate filings, Balkrishna holds a 92% ownership stake in the company, with Bharat owning the remaining portion.
Over the past 12 years, Patanjali Corrupack Private Limited, despite being ostensibly set up for the manufacturing and trading of packaging material, has not conducted any business in line with its intended purpose. Instead, the company has been actively involved in the acquisition and sale of lands in Mangar, diverting funds into real estate ventures.
While the company is legally permitted to lease or purchase land to support its primary business activity, namely the manufacturing and trading of packaging material, it is not authorized to function as a real estate enterprise. However, in the case of Corrupack, there is a notable deviation from its stated business objective, as it exclusively engaged in transactions related to Mangar's lands.
The financial trajectory of Corrupack reveals a significant influx of funds a year after its incorporation. In 2010, Acharya Balkrishna injected Rs 2.99 crore into the company. Subsequently, Corrupack received an additional Rs 2.42 crore as an advance from Gangotri Ayurved Pvt Limited and Rs 5.6 lakh from Aarogya Herbs (India) Pvt Limited. Balkrishna holds a majority of shares in both these companies, with Aarogya Herbs itself possessing 28 acres of land in Mangar, the report stated.
Screengrab of Patanjali Corrupack’s FY 2010 filings showing sharing application money it got from Acharya Balkrishna and two Patanjali-linked companies. (image credit: Reporters Collective)
Acharya Balkrishna, the managing director of Patanjali Ayurved Limited and a key figure alongside Baba Ramdev, effectively transferred more than Rs 5 crore to Corrupack. The explanation provided was that this sum constituted an advance against additional shares that Corrupack was supposed to issue to Balkrishna directly and through his other two shell companies.
Ordinarily, a straightforward exchange of money for shares should be a simple process, usually concluding within a few weeks. However, in this case, neither Balkrishna nor the two other shell companies received the shares against the purported 'share application money' they had invested in Corrupack over the years.
The prolonged delay in issuing shares against the money advanced raises significant red flags, prompting scrutiny into the legitimacy of the operations. To address this concern, The Companies Act, 2013, stipulated that shares should be allotted within 60 days or the advance refunded promptly. The illegal practice of accepting advances in the guise of share application money, without fulfilling the share issuance, can incur penalties of up to Rs 2 crore.
In the case of Corrupack, the promised shares were never allocated, and instead, the share application money was either transferred to the "other current liabilities" section of the accounts or gradually dissipated over time.
Furthermore, Corrupack obtained unsecured loans—funds provided without any collateral—from other companies within the Patanjali empire. It received Rs 6 lakh each from Cheneena Impex Pvt Ltd, Prarekha Exim Pvt Ltd, and Smitasha Impex Pvt Ltd.
Patanjali Corrupack openly acknowledges in its records that these associated companies are deemed "related parties," wherein "key management personnel or their relatives can exercise significant influence." This designation highlights these entities as lesser-known nodes within Baba Ramdev's expansive business empire.
Further investigation confirms that all three of these companies—Cheneena Impex Pvt Ltd, Prarekha Exim Pvt Ltd, and Smitasha Impex Pvt Ltd—are shareholders in Aastha Broadcasting Network Limited, the entity responsible for operating Ramdev's Aastha channel, according to the latest corporate filings.
Empowered by the financial support from the Patanjali network, Corrupack seamlessly transitioned into the role of a real estate dealer. In just a year, the plots owned by the firm in Mangar expanded from 59.74 acres to 70.92 acres. These plots had been originally purchased at a total cost of Rs 4.9 crore, as reflected in the records.
To underscore the potential of this land for builders, it's worth noting that one acre has the capacity to accommodate approximately seven buildings, each housing ten 2BHK apartments.
Screengrab of Patanjali’s FY 2011 filings showing its land holdings. (image credit: Reporters Collective)
Corrupack continued to receive a substantial influx of funds from various Patanjali entities, including Patanjali Parivahan, Devam Ayurved and Divya Yog Mandir Trust, Green Apple Security Systems, and Patanjali Food and Herbal Park. Notably, some of these company records explicitly state that the funds were advanced to Corrupack for the explicit purpose of purchasing lands, contrary to the business activities the company had originally claimed it would undertake.
By the end of the financial year 2011, Corrupack had amassed a total of Rs 6.74 crore in advances and "application money for shares." In the subsequent fiscal year, the company shifted gears and commenced the sale of its acquired land. Records indicate that it generated Rs 15.16 crore from these land sales, using the proceeds to repay unsecured loans owed to three other Patanjali companies. Unfortunately, corporate records do not provide insight into the specific profits accrued by Corrupack from the sale of these particular land parcels.
This financial maneuvering by Patanjali, involving the systematic funneling of funds into a company followed by its movement among indistinguishable entities, all while evading close scrutiny, continued.
The financial intricacies continued for Corrupack as it received an additional unsecured loan of Rs one crore from ABC Global Pvt Limited. Simultaneously, Corrupack extended advances totaling Rs 8.8 crore to five entities. One of these recipients was Gaurisuta Building Solutions Pvt Limited, a company engaged in trading Mangar lands and yet another entity within the Patanjali corporate empire.
Over the course of several years, Corrupack utilized the funds generated from land deals, bolstered by questionable advances, to invest in various other Patanjali Group companies. For instance, in FY2013, the company acquired 60,000 shares of Sanskaar Info TV Pvt Ltd for Rs 90 lakh. Sanskaar Info TV operates the popular Sanskaar TV channel. Additionally, Corrupack advanced money to Aastha Bhajan Broadcasting Pvt Limited, under the guise of a share application advance. In FY2015, Corrupack further invested in the Patanjali Ayurved entity, acquiring 33,119 shares valued at Rs 51.47 lakh.
Screengrab of Corrupack’s FY 2015 filings showing investments it made in Patanjali Ayurved Limited and Vedic Aastha Bhajan Broadcasting Private Limited. (image credit: Reporters Collective)
As of its most recent corporate filings for FY 2021, Patanjali Corrupack continued with its intricate financial transactions, notably avoiding engagement in its core business of packaging material. Nevertheless, the company accumulated a reserve of Rs 15.57 crore. Simultaneously, the latest records indicate that Patanjali Corrupack still holds 1.28 acres in Mangar, potentially poised for further profit generation.
In response to detailed questions about its decade-long absence from its purported packaging material business and its focus on financial maneuvers within the Patanjali empire for land transactions in Mangar, Patanjali Corrupack offered a boilerplate response. The statement asserted that the company's investment activities align with the stipulations of the law and have been conducted in full compliance with applicable laws and regulations governing land acquisition. The response emphasized a commitment to upholding the highest standards of legality and ethical conduct in all business endeavors, sidestepping specific inquiries about its business operations and financial practices.
“Patanjali Corrupack Private Limited has undertaken the investment in accordance with the stipulations of the law. Furthermore, we have diligently adhered to the applicable laws and regulations governing land acquisition to ensure full compliance. The acquisition of the land aligns with the legal framework, and all procedures have been executed with meticulous attention to legal requirements.” The response added.
This report is a summary/aggregation copy of a investigative report published by 'Reporters Collective' on November 22, 2023. The original story was authored by Shreegireesh Jalihal and Tapasya, both reporters of Reporters Collective. The report was edited by Editor of Reporters Collective, Anoop George Philip. You can read the original report by clicking here.
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Delhi riots 2020: HC to hear Umar Khalid's bail plea in UAPA case on Monday
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi High Court will on Monday hear the bail plea of former JNU student Umar Khalid in a UAPA case related to the alleged larger conspiracy behind the communal riots here in February 2020.
The bail pleas by other co-accused in the case -- student activist Sharjeel Imam and Gulfisha Fatima, 'United Against Hate' founder Khalid Saifi and others -- are also listed for fresh hearing before a bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Shalinder Kaur.
The cases were earlier before a bench headed by Justice Suresh Kumar Kait but the judge was recently transferred to the Madhya Pradesh High Court as its Chief Justice.
Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam and several others have been booked under the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and provisions of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly being the "masterminds" of the February 2020 riots, which had left 53 people dead and over 700 injured.
The violence had erupted during the protests against the CAA and NRC.
Umar Khalid, who was arrested by the Delhi Police in September 2020, has assailed a trial court order of May 28, which refused to grant him bail in the case. Notice on his appeal was issued by the high court in July.
The pleas of Imam, Saifi and other accused were filed in 2022 and have been listed before different benches from time to time since then.
Sharjeel Imam, in his appeal filed in 2022, has assailed a trial court order of April 11, 2022 which refused to grant him bail. The police had arrested Imam in the present case on August 25, 2020.
On May 28, the trial court had rejected Umar Khalid's plea seeking regular bail for the second time, saying its previous order dismissing his first bail application had attained finality.
"When the Delhi High Court has already dismissed the criminal appeal of the applicant (Khalid) vide order dated October 18, 2022, and thereafter, the applicant approached the Supreme Court and withdrew his petition, the order of this court as passed on March 24, 2022 (on the first bail plea), has attained finality and now, in no stretch of imagination this court can make analysis of the facts of the case as desired by the applicant and consider the relief as prayed by him," the trial court had said.
On October 18, 2022, the high court had upheld the dismissal of the first bail plea and said the city police's allegations against Umar Khalid are prima facie true.
The high court had said that admittedly, the anti-CAA protests "metamorphosed into violent riots", which "prima facie seemed to be orchestrated at the conspiratorial meetings" and the statements of the witnesses indicate Khalid's "active involvement" in the protests.
