Thursday, December 16, 2010

Yogi's widow sues Sikh business managers in Oregon

EUGENE -- The widow of Yogi Bhajan has sued the managers overseeing the businesses of the Sikh community her husband founded, including Golden Temple, a longtime Eugene natural foods company.

Golden Temple, which previously had annual revenue of $125 million, sold its cereal division in May. It still operates Yogi Tea, which has 50 employees in Springfield and 100 employees in Europe.

The widow, Bibiji Inderjit Kaur Puri of Los Angeles, alleged that her husband's most trusted advisers drew up false documents and backdated them to make it appear as if he had approved what she described as their abandonment of orthodox Sikh practices, their takeover of the community's businesses and the exclusion of his family members from the management board.

Bibiji alleged that once they secured their power, members of the management board Unto Infinity, which includes Golden Temple CEO Kartar Singh Khalsa enriched themselves and Golden Temple managers at the expense of the Sikh Dharma religious community. Gary Roberts, Unto Infinity's attorney, did not respond to a request for comment Monday, but he has denied similar allegations in other lawsuits.

The widow's lawsuit, which was filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court in Portland, alleges that Unto Infinity authorized raises and perks for its members, including boosting Khalsa's salary from $125,000 in 2002 to $850,000 in 2008.

with thanks : kgw : link above for detailed news.

SikhsIndia

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