The alleged donation theft case at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya has taken a fresh turn, with Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati questioning the credibility of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe, even as new discrepancies have surfaced in the recovery figures submitted by the police and the SIT.
Speaking exclusively to Zee Media during his Gau Raksha Yatra in Lucknow, Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand said he could not place complete trust in the SIT investigation because both the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust and the SIT were constituted by the government.
He alleged that the alleged theft had links extending to higher levels and said that transparency would remain a challenge as long as there was government interference in the functioning of the trust. According to him, the trust needs to be “purified” by including only those who are completely devoted to Lord Ram.
Meanwhile, the alleged Ram Temple donation theft case continues to witness new developments. Questions have also been raised regarding the role of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust Treasurer Swami Govind Dev Giri. Earlier, he had reportedly indicated that Trust General Secretary Champat Rai was responsible for the accounts. However, Govind Dev Giri later met Champat Rai at his residence in Ayodhya, where the two held a closed-door meeting for nearly two hours.
After the meeting, Govind Dev Giri left the premises without speaking to the media and was seen avoiding television cameras. On Thursday, he acknowledged that he had met Champat Rai but did not disclose the purpose of the meeting.
The controversy has deepened further after discrepancies emerged between the recovery figures mentioned in the SIT’s preliminary report and those recorded by the police in the seizure memo submitted before the court.
According to the police recovery memo, authorities recovered Rs 79,85,493 in cash, 1,121 US dollars, along with jewellery and other valuable items from the accused at the time of their arrest.
However, the SIT’s preliminary report states that the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust had earlier recovered Rs 81,19,000, including Rs 2.25 lakh allegedly found in a bathroom.
The difference of Rs 1,33,507 between the two official records has raised fresh questions over the investigation. Since both the police and the SIT are investigating the same alleged donation theft case, questions are now being raised over why the recovery figures differ and who will account for the missing amount of more than Rs 1.33 lakh.
The recovery discrepancy has added to existing concerns regarding the trust’s cash counting system, CCTV surveillance and the handling of temple donations, making the ongoing investigation more contentious.
According to information gathered by the SIT during the interrogation of the accused, investigators have also found that members of the accused’s family were allegedly involved and that part of the money had reportedly been transferred to them. The investigation into the alleged donation theft case remains underway.
