Indian officials are seeking to freeze bank accounts of the Missionaries of Charity, founded by St Mother Teresa of Kolkata, following the arrest of a nun on child trafficking charges in Jharkhand state.
State police Chief D.K. Pandey wrote to the federal home secretary last week urging the freeze to facilitate an investigation into whether there were violations of regulations covering acceptance of foreign funding.
Police are probing wider activities of the Missionaries of Charity home for unwed mothers in the wake of both a staff member and the nun being arrested.
A childless couple had filed a complaint in relation to a cash payment they made to adopt a baby.
Police are also now working with tax officials to check income sources and spending of the charity home, according to newspaper reports.
However, Missionaries of Charity spokesperson Sunita Kumar said on July 12 that the broadening of investigations was a deliberate attempt to malign the work of the home for unwed mothers.
She added that there was an intention to “harass and financially trouble” the congregation that St Mother Teresa founded in 1950.
“Our activities, resources and funding are known to the government and there is nothing for us to hide,” Kumar said.
