Acharya Balkrishna, the CEO of Patanjali Ayurved, recently debuted as a billionaire worth ₹25,6000 crore or $3.8 billion, ranked 26 among 339 in the Hurun India Rich List.
While Baba Ramdev's Haridwar-based Patanjali Yogpeeth Ashram has described Balkrishna as a "great scholar of ayurveda, Sanskrit language and Vedas" and claims that he is "credited with rediscovering the Sanjivani buti," the 43-year old CEO reportedly furnished a fake graduate degree in Sanskrit as well as a forged high school degree in order to acquire a passport.
The Indian Express reported today that Balkrishna's 'Purv Madhyma' high school degree and 'Shastri', a Sanskrit degree from Sampurna Nand Sanskrit University do not exist on the university records, and that he was charged with cheating and criminal conspiracy for producing fake documents in 2012.
The CBI said that his passport was issued based on forged high school and graduation certificates, India Times reported.
The Indian Expressreported that two cases, one dealing with forgery and another one involving money laundering, were dropped when the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government came to power at the Centre in 2014.
India Timesreported that Patanjali Ayurved Kendra Pvt. Ltd. had donated a sum of Rs 11,00,000 to the BJP before 2009 general elections as donation.
Also on HuffPost India:
