CBI Books US Christian Group TTI Over Rs 92 Crore Foreign Funding via Debit Cards

The Central Bureau of Investigation has registered a case against a US-based Christian evangelist organisation, The Timothy Initiative, and six individuals for allegedly funnelling foreign funds into India without the mandatory registration under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act.

According to the first information report, funds amounting to roughly Rs 92.55 crore were withdrawn in cash from ATMs across the country using debit cards issued by a United States bank. The transactions, which the agency says took place between November 2025 and April 2026, involved a total withdrawal of $99,95,240 and spanned Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Assam and other states.

The FIR, registered on August 27, names Jonathan S Rajan, Micah Mark, Ajit Verghese Mathai, Bablu Kurmi, Supreme Joy and Varghese Chacko, along with the organisation and unidentified others, as accused. Investigators allege the money was used for "training, preaching and brainwashing of poor people leading to left-wing extremism".

The debit cards were issued by Truist Bank in the United States. More than 1,000 such cards are believed to have been distributed in India over the past few years, the FIR states. The organisation, which describes its goal as "a church in every village, everywhere", has not responded to the allegations. The other accused and the bank have also not commented.

How the case surfaced

The matter came to light after Enforcement Directorate officials intercepted Micah Mark at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru on April 18. He was found carrying 24 foreign debit cards issued by Truist Bank, several of them printed only in the name of "Santosh Kumar". The ED noted in a letter to the Ministry of Home Affairs that the name was allegedly used on Mathai's instructions to avoid suspicion, as it is a very common name in India.

The FIR states that Mark made multiple foreign trips and returned with debit cards, describing him as a key figure in the organisation's financial operations in India.

ED officials also seized Rs 37 lakh in cash from Mathai's premises in Bengaluru, which had allegedly been withdrawn using the foreign debit cards.

Roles of the accused

According to the FIR, Rajan was the overall operation in-charge of the organisation in India and allegedly ensured that ATM withdrawals funded its activities across the country. The ED's letter to the MHA identifies Mathai as the overall finance head of the India operations, operating through entities such as Lead LLP and Crosswise LLP, both registered in Bengaluru, and states that the debit cards were distributed under his direct supervision.

Chacko, Joy and Kurmi are described as field-level functionaries who withdrew the funds and used them for the organisation's activities. Rajan, Mark and Mathai are based in Bengaluru, Joy in Mysuru, Kurmi in Goalpara, Assam, and Chacko in Dhamtari, Chhattisgarh. The organisation is listed at a post office box in Raleigh, North Carolina.

The ED has said the withdrawn cash squarely falls within the definition of "foreign contribution" under Section 2(1)(h) of the FCRA, 2010, making the organisation a "foreign source".

Data deleted during searches

The FIR alleges that after the searches, the organisation's global portal became inaccessible for India, and that data maintained on the cloud as well as on a seized laptop was deleted from the back-end through remote access of servers and the laptop maintained in the US.

The ED's report of April 19 states that access to India-specific payments data was restricted a day earlier, and a laptop that had been fully accessible was found completely wiped at 13:30 hours. On the accounting software QuickBooks, full access was recorded initially, but India-specific data was disabled within hours.

The ED conducted searches at the premises of the accused on April 18 and 19 under the Foreign Exchange Management Act and the Income Tax Act. On June 4, ED deputy director Sohrab Singh Chauhan wrote to the joint secretary of the MHA's FCRA wing seeking appropriate action, including registration of an FIR. By June, the MHA had entrusted the case to the CBI, which subsequently registered the FIR.