Ayodhya Ram Temple Donation Theft Row: 8 Accused Sent to Judicial Custody Till Monday; Nearly ₹80 Lakh Recovered

New Delhi: In a major development, all eight accused arrested in connection with the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya have been remanded to judicial custody till Monday, June 29. 

Following the court hearing, the accused were taken from the special court in Ayodhya to the Ayodhya District Jail.

As the Special Court dealing with Prevention of Corruption Act cases was not functioning due to a holiday, the accused were produced before the duty court, which granted judicial remand until Monday.

Further, investigators recovered a total of ₹7,985,493 from the accused in varying amounts, and officials said no cash was recovered from one of the accused, Subhash Srivastava, though he is alleged to have been part of the conspiracy.

According to investigators, several of the accused are public servants drawing government salaries, while some are employees of the State Bank of India (SBI).

Who are the Eight Accused?

The eight accused named in the FIR are:

- Tinnu Yadav, an associate of Champat Rai, from whom the keys to the donation box were allegedly recovered.

- Anukalp Mishra, who allegedly counted the temple donations.

- Lavkush Mishra, Anukalp Mishra's brother-in-law, from whose residence ₹10 lakh in cash was allegedly recovered.

- Manish Yadav, Tinnu Yadav's nephew, from whose house cash was also recovered.

- Subhash Srivastava, who allegedly participated in counting the cash.

- Avinash Shukla, allegedly involved in counting temple donations.

- Karunesh Pandey, who allegedly assisted in calculating the donations.

- Ramashankar Mishra, who allegedly took part in counting the cash.

The FIR has been registered under several provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Sections 306, 316(5), 317(4), 317(5), 61 and 3(5), covering allegations related to criminal breach of trust, misappropriation, conspiracy and common intention.

The case pertains to the alleged theft and misappropriation of donations received at the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple.

What is the Ram Temple Donation Row?

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust manages the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, which was inaugurated in January 2024 following a landmark Supreme Court verdict. The temple receives substantial voluntary donations and offerings from devotees across India and abroad, seen as sacred contributions tied to deep religious sentiment.

The current controversy revolves around claims of large-scale embezzlement of these funds. What began as allegations by an opposition leader quickly gained momentum with the Trust’s own request for an SIT probe, indicating internal concern over the integrity of the donations. The swift registration of the FIR and the resignations of senior trust functionaries underscore the seriousness with which authorities and the Trust are treating the matter.

The issue surfaced following allegations by former Samajwadi Party MLA from Ayodhya, Pawan Pandey. He claimed that donations worth between ₹7 crore and ₹7.5 crore received at the Ram Temple had been misappropriated. In response, the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust requested a probe. Acting swiftly, the Uttar Pradesh government constituted a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) on June 14 to investigate the alleged scam involving offerings made at the temple.

The SIT’s preliminary findings led to the registration of an FIR, triggering further action, including the high-profile resignations.