Deoria Shelter Scandal: How Girija Tripathi, a housewife metamorphosed into a businesswoman

The main accused of the famous Deoria Shelter Home Case of UP, Girija Tripathi, is still in police custody and new disclosures are coming up everyday. The Tripathis are sitting on property worth crores. In such a situation, the question arises that how did the minority shelter home set up a millionaire empire?

Girija and other officials continued to receive funds in the name of orphans, senior citizens and the homeless people.

An investigation has revealed that Girija Tripathi was a housewife and in the early days she used to do sewing and tailoring work to help with the family’s income. Slowly she left tailoring and opened a shelter and then spread her business from Devaria to Gorakhpur. Due to her connections with the local administration and government, the local people feared her.

Girija Tripathi, started the Vindhyaswini women’s training and service institute located in Deoria, which was known to help women and children in need and also to fight for their rights. She started rubbing shoulders with people in power and politics. She has also been honored several times for her contribution to women and chil rights. Girija Tripathy runs Shelter Home chain in eastern Uttar Pradesh. Shelters from her children walk from home to old shelter home. He spread the business of crores of rupees in the last 25 years from Shelter Home.

In 1993, she had registered her NGO. This registration was done as a chitfund company, but later she got the chance to run a Shelter Home and in collaboration with the local administration, she changed the intent of the NGO. After that she continued to run the shelter and expanding her empire. In June 2017, however it was featured on the NGO blacklist.

Girija Tripathi was living in Rupai village. She was married to Mohan Tripathi, a resident of Nunkhar. Mohan used to work in Bhatni Sugar Mill and started running the sewing center to increase the income of the family. When Bhatni Sugar Mill got shut down in the 90s, Mohan became unemployed, after that he started living in Deoria with Girija and his children. This was the main reason why Girija had to start with the ‘shelter business’

In Deoria, Girija built the Maa Vindhyasinini Training Institute and started the training of sewing machine training. Through this NGO, she started camping for literacy in Deoria and the surrounding districts. 15 years ago her NGO started getting government projects. The government funded her shelter. After that there was no looking back for Girija.

During her expansion of her shelter’business’ she got involved with several government and local projects. She opened three Shelter homes in Deoria. Simultaneously, old age homes was opened in Devaria, Gorakhpur and Salempur. Apart from this, she also runs an Adoption Center from where children are adopted by foreigners.

According to police officials, Girija Devi owns many lands in Raja Bazar and Oraa Bazar. In Raja Bazar, she has also built a two-storey building. She was preparing to open an old age home in Raja Bazar.

Girija Tripathi, was also given the opportunity to oversee group marriages by the Chief Minister. Photographs taken with officials and politicians posing in each of her shelter homes have also been found during the investigation. Not only this, the functioning of the Chief Minister’s mass marriage held on February 9 was given to his NGO. Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Singh was the chief guest of the program. Girija, also expelled the district administration team from her Shelter Home on July 30. The team had arrived to vacate their shelter home. An FIR was registered in this case against Girija.

Also Read: Deoria shelter case: Yogi Adityanath orders CBI inquiry