“Like a salary,” How Saket Gokhale swindled Rs 76 lakhs from desperate anti-Modi brigade

Saket Gokhale is an alleged scamster. He has been living a luxurious life off the bits thrown at him by like-minded imbeciles, who think they can effectuate a regime change in India through PIL and RTI activism. Saket Gokhale files free Right to Information (RTI) claims. He has also been filing police complaints against his political and ideological adversaries of late. 

Gokhale, however, has been accused of merely filing complaints and RTI applications, and not following upon them. Particularly in cases involving courts, the man is quick to file PILs, without actually following upon them. So, the legal costs incurred by him are practically zero.

Also read: Saket Gokhale, the fake news activist, has been dealt a severe blow by the Delhi High Court

Yet, Saket Gokhale has been seeking crowdfunding for at least two to three years now. He asks people to donate to his cause of activism, so that he may keep those in power in check. Therefore, liberals, far-left extremists, and Islamists end up getting honey-trapped into Gokhale’s alleged financial scam. One such specimen – Hussain Haidry is very annoyed. 

Haidry even took to Twitter to claim how Gokhale never replies if one asks for CA audited receipts, payment accounts and status of work done till date in terms of FIR, PIL and RTI complaints filed with cost per case, among other details. 

If I am "targeting" you and these are "misapprehensions," why don't you publicly prove me wrong:

1. FIR with strictest sections on behalf of TMC (since you claimed "outside of Twitter actions")

2. Audited Receipt & Payment A/C from cashbook and bank statement

3. Status of work https://t.co/O1D7DMYqVZ

— Hussain Haidry (@hussainhaidry) December 31, 2021

Saket Gokhale backstabs his comrades?

Hussain Haidry did not pull any punches. He went for Saket’s jugular. Hussain said that when people demand transparency from Saket Gokhale, he often responds with “You did not donate to me” or “Take your money back”. 

Saket Gokhale Accountability—

While raising funds: "I produce an account of every rupee spent."

When asked about every rupee spent: "I didn't promise anything." pic.twitter.com/hnfZMPD9kK

— Hussain Haidry (@hussainhaidry) January 1, 2022

Saket Gokhale has the audacity to ask for accountability every day as he completely denies for details of the money he has raised from crowdfunding and spent mostly for personal use.

Apparently the amount is over Rs. 76 lacs in the span of a year!@AITCofficial @MamataOfficial https://t.co/cbe5yFnZYr

— Hussain Haidry (@hussainhaidry) January 2, 2022

Saket Gokhale seems to have allegedly raised Rs. 76 lakhs in one year to fund his ‘operations’. One user pointed that after people started demanding accountability from Saket Gokhale, he moved from a fundraising platform to a direct payment platform, thus removing even an ounce of transparency obligations. 

It is important to mention here that Saket Gokhale was previously a Congress and Gandhi poodle, before eventually joining the Trinamool Congress. Now, he is a spokesperson for the TMC. 

A major point of contention between TMC supporters and liberals in general, is that Saket Gokhale’s filings – whether they be PILs or FIRs – should have the TMC letterhead to add weight to the complaints. Gokhale disagrees. He continues to put himself at the forefront, as publishing complaints with the TMC letterhead will convince his foolish donors that he has sufficient financial backing from the party.

Also read: TMC steals fake news peddler and RTI-abuser Saket Gokhale from Congress

That would mean his alleged yet extravagant extortion racket would dry up, and the many luxuries of life would be snatched from him in a jiffy. 

It started with a reply to criticism that “TMC is silent on Haridwar”. One pointed out that I, in fact, was the 1st to file a complaint with Haridwar Police. It then turned into “why isn’t the complaint on a TMC letterhead?”

That’s not quite how things work but whatever.

(2/6)

— Saket Gokhale MP (@SaketGokhale) January 1, 2022

If the govt now uses this as a pretext to unleash the IT Dept or ED, I have no issues. They’re absolutely welcome. As early as tomorrow.

I raised funds for my sustenance – like a salary to be able to do my work full-time. And that’s been clear as day from day 1.

(4/6)

— Saket Gokhale MP (@SaketGokhale) January 1, 2022

Here is the screenshot for journalists, in case Saket Gokhale's phone falls and only that particular tweet gets deleted where he is asking for funds on 28th December, 2020 while he falsely claims he stopped around mid-2020. 😄 pic.twitter.com/Od2jozxpnE

— Hussain Haidry (@hussainhaidry) January 1, 2022

Gokhale Claims the Finances were for ‘Monthly’ Expenses and ‘Sustenance’

Saket Gokhale wants us to believe that he allegedly raised Rs. 76 lakh rupees in a year for “monthly expenses” and “sustenance”. It almost looks like all Indians should become activists and begin crowdfunding lakhs of rupees for “sustenance”. This is a sure-shot way of eliminating poverty in India. 

The crowdfunding would have made sense, had Saket been using the money on the causes he champions. If accusations being hurled at him are anything to go by, that is not the case, and Gokhale is merely using the ‘activism’ card to earn big money. This is proven by the fact that Saket Gokhale is still refusing to come clean on how he spent the money on legal complaints. 

Interestingly, in February 2020, Saket had claimed that the money he raised “helps pay my expenses for the work I do full-time”. What is his full-time work? Phoney activism. 

Now, however, he is claiming that the money raised is used in covering his expenses. If this is not the grandest about-turn in the history of about-turns, we don’t know what is. Saket Gokhale has landed in the hot soup now because he has begun antagonising the very people who funded his fraudulent activism. ‘Sustenance’ will soon become difficult for the man.