Ram Temple Donation Theft Case: Eight Accused Sent to 14-Day Judicial Custody

A local court has remanded all eight accused in the high-profile Ayodhya Ram Mandir donation theft case to 14 days of judicial custody. Amid tight security, the individuals were produced virtually before the duty magistrate, who ordered them to be held in jail as investigators dig deeper into the alleged financial embezzlement.

The legal action follows an intensive probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT), which was constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government after the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust flagged serious financial discrepancies. 

Acting on the SIT’s preliminary findings, trust member Krishna Mohan lodged a formal complaint, leading to a prompt police crackdown and subsequent arrests.

Further escalating the matter, the Ayodhya Bar Association unanimously resolved to boycott the eight arrested individuals, refusing to provide them with legal representation. Citing that the theft of sacred temple offerings deeply hurt their religious sentiments, the association’s general body formally warned its members that any advocate attempting to defend the accused would face an immediate ₹5 lakh penalty.

The prosecution successfully argued for immediate custody, citing the severity of the institutional breach. The accused—primarily outsourced bank employees tasked with counting cash offerings—face rigorous charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for criminal conspiracy and theft by a servant. Authorities have already recovered approximately ₹79.85 lakh during preliminary raids.

The virtual court appearance was leveraged to maintain public order given the immense sensitivity surrounding the case. With the eight accused now behind bars and legally isolated by the local bar, the SIT is expanding its investigation. Detectives are currently reviewing extensive CCTV footage from the counting rooms and scanning bank records to trace the full trail of the stolen funds and establish an airtight protocol to safeguard future devotee offerings.

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