Madhya Pradesh EOW detains bishop from Nagpur airport in cheating case

The Madhya Pradesh Economic Offences Wing on Monday detained P C Singh, bishop of the Church of North India's Jabalpur Diocese, from Nagpur Airport in Maharashtra for questioning in a cheating case registered against him, an official said.

Last Thursday, the EOW claimed to have recovered around Rs 1.60 crore in Indian and foreign currencies from the bishop's residence in Jabalpur during searches followed the registration of the cheating case against Singh, who was then in Germany.

The Economic Offences Wing took help of various agencies, including the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), to monitor the movements of Singh on return from abroad, EOW's Superintendent of Police Devendra Singh Rajput told PTI.

"Singh was taken into custody from the Nagpur Airport for interrogation in connection with the cheating case registered against him," he said.

The EOW last month registered the case against Bishop Singh after a complaint alleged that he indulged in financial misconduct in running an educational society, of which he was the chairman, the official said.

A preliminary investigation had revealed that Rs 2.70 crore collected as students' fees by the society's various institutions between 2004-05 and 2011-12 was allegedly transferred to religious institutions, misused and spent by the bishop for personal needs, an EOW official earlier said.

A case was then registered against Singh and former assistant registrar of Firms and Societies B S Solanki under Indian Penal Code Sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using a forge document or electronic record) and 120 B (punishment for criminal conspiracy), the official had said.

MP Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday said it will be investigated whether the money was being used for religious conversion or any other illegal activity.