Dharmasthala case: Enforcement Directorate probing financials of YouTubers, social media influencers

BENGALURU: Two days after Udupi MP Kota Srinivas Poojary wrote to the Union Home ministry seeking a probe into suspected foreign funding of YouTubers and social media influencers in the Dharmasthala case, the Union minister has directed the Enforcement Directorate to look into the issue.

Accordingly, the ED officials in Bengaluru are scrutinising the financial details of several YouTubers and social media influencers. The BJP and Hindu organisations in Karnataka have accused some YouTubers and social media users of spreading false propaganda against Dharmasthala. They have demanded a thorough investigation into the matter, suspecting that foreign funds were used to spread the propaganda.

Though the BJP had previously requested the state government to conduct a separate investigation into the allegations of false propaganda, the state government has not yet taken any action. Now, BJP and pro-Hindu leaders are approaching the central government, demanding an investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) or the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into the foreign funding aspect.

Udupi MP Kota Srinivas Poojary has written to the Union Home Ministry seeking an ED investigation into the matter. Poojary has alleged that the propaganda was spread using foreign funds and that a toolkit was used to spread news article to go viral on foreign media platforms.

BJP and some Hindu leaders, including R Ashoka, are demanding an NIA investigation into the matter, as they believe that only a probe by a central agency can reveal the true extent of the conspiracy.