Two days after the Uttar Pradesh government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe allegations about the embezzlement of donations, the team reached Ayodhya on Monday and began its probe from the cash-counting room at the Ram temple complex.
The SIT conducted its probe for around eight hours and left the Ram Mandir complex after 10.30pm. The three -member probe team stayed back in Ayodhya for the night.
According to people familiar with the matter, the SIT has decided to set up its camp office in the Ram temple complex so that the probe can be carried out smoothly and completed within the schedule.
Earlier in the day, the team entered the Ram temple complex from gate number 11 at 2:53 p.m. in separate vehicles and went straight to the cash-counting room.
The SIT sought details of the staff engaged by Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust for counting cash since the temple opened for devotees on January 23, 2024, a day after the formal inauguration.
The SIT also examined the vault where cash was locked after counting and the register where daily cash counts were recorded.
According to people familiar with the matter, the SIT also examined all the CCTV data boxes and retrieved the footage to examine the cash -counting process.
The SIT also inquired whether the CCTV footage data was ever deleted and for how long its data is maintained.
The team sought the names and addresses of staff posted over the past few years for cash counting, along with a list of trustees. The team will then question them.
The SIT members are Lucknow divisional commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant, inspector general of police (Lucknow range) Kiran S and special secretary (Finance) Neel Ratan.
The SIT will conduct a thorough inquiry into the entire matter and submit its preliminary report to the government in seven days and the final report in the next 15 days.
According to people familiar with the matter, the SIT team will also probe the financial condition of the cash-counting staff after they were engaged by the Trust.
Whether the staff is related to or in close proximity to any Trust member is also an issue for investigation.
The initial report will likely focus on the alleged theft from offering amounts, monitoring of counting, and accountability of those responsible, according to those in the know. However, the scope could be expanded.
A large section of the Trust employees, however, are pleased with the probe.
“As the probe has begun, those behind the scam and their so-called mentors will be exposed,” said an employee of the Trust.
Many employees on the Trust’s payroll are said to be unhappy with the disparity in wages that the Trust pays.
The staff on the Trust’s payroll was getting wages between ₹10,000 and ₹15,000 per month while the Trust was paying ₹28,000 per month to outsourced staff.
“Despite assurance by the Trust, wages were never increased,” said an employee of the Trust.
Devotees said that whoever is involved in the theft should be given stern punishment so that no one can carry out such an act again.
Amid the SIT’s arrival in Ayodhya for the probe, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust general secretary Champat Rai was reported to be unwell.
Champat Rai is suffering from a cold along with elevated blood sugar levels and taking rest, according to people familiar with the matter who added that senior Trust member Anil Mishra has gone to Kerala for medical consultation.
NO POSSIBILITY OF LAXITY IN PROBE
Ram temple construction committee chairman Nripendra Misra on Monday expressed confidence in the SIT.
“One aspect of the case is linked to criminal investigation and the second important aspect is ensuring systemic improvements in the future,” he said.
Action on both fronts will strengthen the faith of devotees, he said, adding that now there is no possibility of any laxity in the investigation.
He was in Ayodhya for the construction committee’s two-day meeting which ended late Sunday night.
“The state government has done commendable work by constituting the SIT swiftly,” he said to reporters.
The Ram temple administration will extend all possible cooperation to the SIT, he said.
Misra stressed on the need for a fair and effective investigation.
On construction work at the Ram temple complex, Misra said it has reached its final phase.
Around 90% of the construction work is complete and it has been handed over to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple Trust. All construction-related records have also been transferred to the Trust, Misra said.
All construction agencies will exit the site by July 15. The responsibility for operating the complex will now rest with the Trust.
A special discussion on the Ram Katha Museum was held during the meeting. The museum, which will feature 3D-based displays, is expected to open by December 2026. The Trust will decide whether there will be an entry fee for the museum.
POSTER COMES UP IN AYODHYA, HIGHLIGHTS CONTROVERSY, REMOVED
A poster highlighting the Ram temple donation controversy has come up in Ayodhya.
Put up at the city’s Pushpraj intersection by Sharad Shukla, vice president of the Uttar Pradesh Youth Congress, the poster quotes a verse from the Skanda Purana, conveying that stealing or usurping land, property, or donations given to a temple constitutes a grave sin according to scriptures.
After the Ayodhya administration received information about the poster hanging on an advertisement billboard, they removed it.
FAITH OF CRORES LINKED TO OFFERINGS: IQBAL ANSARI
Iqbal Ansari, former litigant in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title case, on Monday demanded an impartial investigation into the Ram temple donation controversy and called for strict action. Expressing confidence in the SIT, he said it should conduct the probe in a fair and transparent manner.
“God’s money will not go anywhere, God himself will find his money,” Ansari said, adding that offerings at Ram temple are linked to the faith of crores of devotees.
He said people across the country have contributed financially to the construction of Ram temple.
“The money offered by devotees has come in the name of Lord Ram, so accountability for it must be fixed,” he added.
Ansari questioned where the money was allegedly hidden and how the irregularities occurred, saying the probe was necessary.
Ansari said , like the rest of the country, he too demands that the culprits be identified and strict legal action be taken against them.
Sanjay Singh, AAP Rajya Sabha MP and Uttar Pradesh incharge of the party, demanded stern action against those behind the alleged scam.
Speaking to reporters in Varanasi, Singh also demanded the dissolution of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.
