The Ram temple donation row has further escalated with many devotees claiming that they did not get receipts for their offerings. The three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), formed to probe alleged irregularities and misappropriation of funds in the Ram Temple donation, has submitted a report on its initial findings to the state government on Tuesday. However, the claims by devotees have raised further question on the functioning of the temple trust.
Samajwadi Party MP questions ‘idol’ status
Samajwadi Party MP Rajeev Rai has shared a video of a valuable Ram idol donated to the temple and has asked where is the idol. “This idol of Lord in the Thanjavur style, worth crores, was donated by my friend from Bangalore, Jai Shri Faneesh, for the Ram Mandir. Initially, the trust management had asked to keep it in the museum, due to which the devotee had refused to give it, and said that we would have it installed in the Kedareswar Temple being built by Shri @yadavakhilesh ji. Upon hearing this, the Ram Mandir Trust immediately agreed to install it in the temple. Please clarify, whether this idol is safe or stolen?” asked Rai.
Sindhi Community’s silver bricks donation
On alleged Ayodhya Ram Mandir donations embezzlement case, Dr. Raju V Manwani, Chairman & Managing Director, Castles Group Of Companies said that on behalf of the Sindhi community, 200 silver bricks each weighing one kilogram were handed over to Champat Rai in Ayodhya on January 26, 2021 for the Ram Temple.
“We didn’t receive a receipt at the time; he said they would first check and decide where and how to use it, and then inform us. We never seriously questioned whether it would go to the temple or elsewhere. However, after watching the news we began to worry—had our silver ended up in the wrong place? That is why we appealed for a receipt and information on where the silver was utilised…If the silver wasn’t used for the temple, it is deeply distressing; if a donation intended for the temple is diverted elsewhere, it affects future donors,” said Manwani.
He further shared that the silver was worth over Rs 1 crore. “At the time we donated, the silver was worth around Rs 1.5 to Rs 2 crore; today, its value is Rs 6 to Rs 7 crore. People certainly have the right to ask about the donations they made. Since nothing is impossible under the leadership of Modi and Yogi, if an SIT has been constituted, then at the very least, the culprits who misused this power should be punished,” said Manwani.
SIT probe preliminary report
The SIT team handed over a preliminary report to state home secretary Sanjay Prasad and is understood to have pointed out procedural lapses at multiple levels. The SIT team, comprising Lucknow Divisional Commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant, Inspector General of Police Kiran S, and Finance Department Special Secretary Neel Ratan, scrutinised various temple records about gold and jewellery offerings at the temple, handling of cash and other valuables offered by the staff and also scanned CCTV footage to arrive at the conclusion.
Though a detailed investigation into alleged embezzlement is underway, the SIT team is understood to have zeroed in on alleged lapses and loopholes regarding the management of temple funds and gold offerings. It is also believed to have flagged discrepancies in its initial report, about the cash handling process, its transportation to Temple Trust office and also the CCTV surveillance. (With IANS inputs)
