Ayodhya Ram Temple Donation Row: All 8 Accused Named In SIT Report Sent To Jail After FIR

New Delhi: In a major development in the Ram Mandir donation theft case, all eight accused are set to be sent to jail on Thursday after a fresh FIR was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by Shri Ram Janmabhoomi

Teerth Kshetra Trust member Krishna Mohan. The action follows the findings of a preliminary probe conducted by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which was constituted by the Trust to investigate alleged irregularities in the counting of temple offerings.

According to sources, the SIT has already questioned all eight accused and recommended legal action after its preliminary investigation allegedly found evidence of criminal misappropriation and theft of Ram Mandir donation funds during the counting process.

Based on the SIT's findings, the Trust lodged a formal complaint, following which an FIR was registered at the Ram Janmabhoomi Police Station.

The eight accused named in the FIR are Avinash Shukla, Anukalp Mishra, Laghukar Mishra, Manish Yadav, Karunesh Pandey, Ramashankar Mishra, Subhash Srivastava and Ramshankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav. They have been booked under relevant provisions for alleged theft and receiving stolen property.

All eight are expected to be sent to jail after 2 pm.

Republic has accessed the complaint letter submitted by Krishna Mohan, which states that the SIT's examination of available evidence and its investigation report clearly indicated that certain personnel had criminally misappropriated donation funds during the counting process.

The complaint urged the police to register a case against the eight accused and initiate necessary legal action.

According to officials, the case has been filed under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Sections 306, 316(5), 317(4), 317(5), 61 and 3(5), on the directions of the Uttar Pradesh Government.

Those who have been named in the FIR are: Anukalp Mishra, Lavkush Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Tinnu Yadav, Manish Yadav and others. This comes after allegations were made by former SP MLA from Ayodhya, Pawan Pandey, who claimed that between Rs 7 crore and Rs 7.5 crore in donations were misappropriated from the Ram Mandir.

Following the allegations, on June 14, the state government constituted a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged scam involving offerings made at the Ram Mandir, following a request from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir Trust.

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh Police have named eight individuals in the FIR registered in connection with the alleged misappropriation of donations and offerings made by devotees at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya.

The FIR details allegations of intentional theft, habitual theft, aiding theft and criminal breach of trust by someone in a position of responsibility, all under a criminal conspiracy. The provisions related to embezzlement and cheating have also been applied. 

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