ISKCON Kolkata Removes Vice President Radharaman Das Amid Midday Meal Row

ISKCON Kolkata Vice President Radharaman Das has been removed from the post and sent on "compulsory leave of absence", the organisation said in a statement on Monday. The statement said that Das has been instructed not to represent ISKCON before the media, government authorities, or any other forum.

"We wish to inform well-wishers, devotees, all members of the media and the general public that Radharaman Das has been sent on a compulsory leave of absence within ISKCON and has also been directed not to represent or speak on behalf of ISKCON before the media, government authorities or any public forum," the statement read. 

The development comes amidst heated debates over eggs being dropped from the midday meal scheme in West Bengal. The removal of Das comes days after he made several media appearances regarding the meal scheme. 

In a now-deleted social media post, Das mentioned six possible reasons behind his removal, including him being publicly outspoken about the persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh and him giving interviews to the media. 

"ISKCON, which is serving globally in 100 countries in various cultural, linguistic and social conditions, has its rules, standards, mandate and ethics for its members, and when a member does not follow his mandate, corrective measures are offered," ISKCON's statement read. 

"After multiple requests made to him over the years, ISKCON implemented the corrective measures by sending him on a leave of absence for not following its procedures, acting unilaterally in contravention to ISKCON's official stand and interfering in areas beyond his jurisdiction," the statement added.