Congress has sought a Supreme Court-monitored probe into the alleged Ram Temple donation scam, calling it a “Chanda Chori mega scandal.”
New Delhi: The Congress on Thursday intensified its attack over the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, with party general secretary K.C. Venugopal urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to order a Supreme Court-monitored investigation into what he termed the “Chanda Chori mega scandal.”
In a letter to the Prime Minister, Venugopal alleged that the fraud involved “hundreds of crores” and described it as a betrayal of the faith of millions of devotees. He questioned the credibility of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government, claiming it was merely an “eyewash” that had so far targeted only lower-level employees.
The Congress leader alleged that crucial CCTV footage had been destroyed and that complaints by former trust officials about financial irregularities were ignored. He argued that the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, created by the Centre in 2020, warranted the highest level of accountability.
Meanwhile, the investigation gathered pace in Ayodhya. The SIT began the second phase of its probe, while police prepared to seek 48-hour custody of accused Avinash Shukla for further questioning. Authorities also issued a notice over an under-construction property linked to another accused, Lavkush Mishra.
Separately, a group of lawyers submitted a complaint seeking the registration of an FIR against Ram Temple Trust general secretary Champat Rai, trust member Anil Mishra and special member Gopal Rao. However, no FIR had been registered against them till Thursday evening.
The alleged donation scam came to light after an SIT inquiry, with eight accused arrested and nearly Rs 80 lakh in cash recovered so far.
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