PICTURE SPEAK

KIND TO KIN: Charges of nepotism mar Chandra Shekhar's (centre) image

Singh, an RSS worker, had been nominated secretary of the Jayaprakash Narayan Memorial Foundation in 2001 following the demise of Jugdishji, who had till then been entrusted with its affairs. Ideological differences between the two notwithstanding, Chandra Shekhar had himself appointed Singh in an apparent move to promote people from his home town.

OF THE PEOPLE, FOR THE FAMILY Apart from two ancestral homes, assets Chandra Shekhar built as JP memorials were funded by public and political figures, including MPs and MLAs. With his grandson at the helm, allegations of misappropriation abound.

THE PRUNED AND THE PILE: House in Ibrahim Patti and the incomplete Jai Prabha Hospital valued at around Rs 5 crore JAYAPRAKASH NARAYAN MEMORIAL FOUNDATION, BALIA: Developed in 1982 with contributions from the public, it has now been reduced to a pocket borough of Chandra Shekhar's family. Estimated value: Rs 5 crore. BHARAT YATRA KENDRA CENTRES: Located in Delhi and other cities. Estimated value: Rs 10 crore. DEVASTHALI VIDYAPEETH, BALIA: An educational institute (right). Estimated value: Rs 1 crore. NEW BHONDSI ASHRAM IN HARYANA: After the Haryana Government took possession of the old Bhondsi ashram, Chandra Shekhar constructed another adjacent to the previous structure. Estimated value: Rs 2 crore. BUNGALOW IN BALIA: Furnished opulently with every modern facility, its sprawling premises are a far cry from a kutia , as it is popularly called. Estimated value: Rs 1 crore.

Subsequently, steadily declining health prevented Chandra Shekhar from taking an active part in the foundation's administration. By 2004, his trips to Balia ground to a complete halt as he became strictly confined to bed. The same year, the term of the memorial trust, registered with the registrar, chit funds office, expired.

Inexplicably, an ailing Chandra Shekhar, who is the president of the trust, failed to issue directions for its renewal, rendering it without a helmsman for the past two years. "Even our salaries were blocked," says a member of the staff. Finally on July 7, Singh wrote to Chandra Shekhar warning him, "some members from your family have set their eyes on the trust. Some others are indulging in financial embezzlement. Please take a quick decision regarding renewal of the trust". The letter went unanswered, but Singh received an intimation from a bank that the trust had been renewed. A day later he came to know from newspaper reports that Chandra Shekhar's grandson Ravi Shankar Singh, alias Pappu Bhaiyya, had been named secretary of the trust.

INTERVIEW | RAVI SHANKAR SINGH

'Virendra Singh held RSS shakhas at JP memorial' Chandra Shekhar's grandson Ravi Shankar Singh spoke to Special Correspondent Subhash Mishra. Q. You have been accused of illegally taking over the multi-crore JP Memorial Foundation. A. I don't know what Virendra Singh's intention is behind spreading such lies against me. Q. How did you become secretary of the memorial? A. As president of the memorial, Chandra Shekhar had convened a meeting of its members in Delhi. Out of 15 members, 10 were present on the occasion and I was unanimously elected secretary. Q. Chandra Shekhar had reportedly expressed his desire to donate his property to the nation. Then why are you taking over? A. It is a canard spread deliberately by people like H.N. Sharma (Chandra Shekhar's political secretary who was recently dismissed) and some of his journalist friends. Q. What are your future plans? A. I have to save the memorial from people like Virendra Singh. I also plan to set up a Shekhar Pratishthan in Chandra Shekhar's name. Q. The memorial allegedly has a secret account which only Chandra Shekhar operated? A. Chandra Shekhar worked hard to mobilise funds to convert an old ancestral house of JP into a memorial. Prior to that there was no such memorial or museum in JP's name, not even in Bihar which was his karmabhoomi. I would like to ask Virendra Singh what he has done during his tenure as secretary apart from holding rss shakhas (daily gathering) in its compound. Q. It is being said you are inheriting Chandra Shekhar's legacy. A. Chandra Shekhar does not like this. Once when I was arrested, he had said, "If he has committed a crime, let him face the consequences. I will not help." So now, how can he pass on his legacy to me?

Suspecting foul play, Singh again wrote to Chandra Shekhar on July 13 to question the veracity of the election process. "Ravi Shankar Singh will degrade the memorial. He is not fit for the job. We should look for a follower of JP," Singh's letter pointed out. It was greeted with silence. Undeterred, Singh addressed a third missive on July 25, alleging irregularities in the election of the new committee members. "I had previously alerted you that some of your kin had their eyes set on the foundation. My apprehensions have been proved true. Why are you so helpless at this stage? Why are you turning emotional and handing over a national memorial into their hands?"

Replying to Singh's allegations with stubborn silence, Chandra Shekhar instead shot off two letters to the registrar, chit funds office. In the first, he maintained that Ravi Shankar, a member of the Legislative Council, had been legally elected. The second letter cast aspersions on Singh's functioning. "Virendra Singh's period has been the worst and his departure is good for the JP Trust," agrees Shiv Narain Singh, an associate of the trust.

PICTURE SPEAK

FALLING OUT: Virendra Singh is now a fierce Chandra Shekhar critic

Detractors of the former prime minister-whose rise to the upper echelons of power from humble beginnings together with initiatives to improve the lot of the impoverished populace of his hometown had turned him into a legendary figure-believe that while the senior leader may not have amassed personal wealth, he is now surreptitiously laying claim to assets assembled under the guise of immortalising JP. "The recent dispute unmasks his real face," says a one-time close associate.

Interestingly, most of the ashrams, trusts and guesthouses developed by Chandra Shekhar are of little use to the public. Take the Jai Prabha Hospital in his native village of Ibrahim Patti. Under construction since 1972, crores of rupees have been squandered on it but the hospital is still incomplete. A few miles away, a guesthouse facing Chandra Shekhar's home was built using lakhs of rupees. But instead of providing shelter to the commoner, it was open only to the rare VVIP guest and is now occupied by his kin. Ashrams and assets associated with his Rachna Chakra campaign are also not for the general public. The much-publicised Bhondsi Ashram in Haryana was handed over to the Bhondsi panchayat after the Supreme Court intervened. It seems for Chandra Shekhar, charity, quite literally, begins at home.

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