Verghese Kurien used Amul’s profit for religious conversions: Dileep Sanghani

Dileep Sanghani, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader from Gujarat has accused Dr Verghese Kurien of using Amul’s profit for religious conversation. Dr Verghese Kurien was the founder-chairman of the National Dairy Development Board and the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation.

Sanghani’s allegations came at a time when Amul has organised motorcycle rallies to celebrate ‘National Milk Day’ on November 26, which also marks Kurien’s birth anniversary. Sanghani claimed that Amul was founded by Tribhuvandas Patel not the founder of Amul Dr Verghese Kurien.  Does the country know about Tribhuvandas Patel? he asked.

Adding on he said that the money that Gujarat’s farmers and cattle rearers collected through their hard work, Kurien used it for religious conversions in Dangs (South Gujarat).

During 2007-2012, Sanghani was in charge of the agriculture, cooperation and animal husbandry portfolios. Currently, he is a chairman of the Gujarat State Cooperative Marketing Federation and vice-chairman of the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation.

Also read: Six Amul directors boycotted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Anand event

Sanghani claimed that details about Kurien’s donations can be checked from Amul’s records adding that when he was the minister the issue had come to his notice.

“When Kurien was heading Amul, he made donations to Christian missionaries. You can get the details from Amul’s records,” he said, claiming that the donations were made to missionaries in Gujarat and elsewhere. “When I was the minister, this issue came to my notice, but I was advised to keep quiet because the Congress could have raked up the issue across the country,” he quoted saying by The Indian Express.

When asked would he demand an investigation into the matter, he said, “We did whatever was required during my tenure. We just did not declare it then.” Sanghani is the founder chairman of Amar Dairy, run by the Amreli District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union Ltd. “I addressed Amul’s bike rally that had come to Amar Dairy… While we do not have any doubts about Dr Kurien’s contributions, nobody is remembering Tribhuvandas Patel who was the founder of Amul… Kurien was only a secretary,” he said.

Asked about Sanghani’s allegations, GCMMF Managing Director R S Sodhi, who is currently out of the country, sent a text message which reads “Let me check.”

Notably, Kurien is known as the ‘father of the white revolution’ for helping India emerge as the world’s largest milk producer. He was also awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 1999.

Also read: Ashok Gehlot accuses Rajasthan government of patronising liquor, land and sand mafia