Ram Temple Donation Theft: Congress Wants Records Public, SC-Led Probe

Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh said on Wednesday, 11 November, that the BJP, RSS and VHP “cannot evade responsibility” for the theft of donations at the Ayodhya Ram temple, and demanded that all financial records of the temple trust be made public. In a post on X, he also asked for the investigation to be widened beyond the eight employees already arrested and to be carried out under Supreme Court supervision.

Four Demands From Congress

Ramesh, who calls the matter “Chanda Chori, Aastha Dhokha” (donation theft, betrayal of faith), listed the party’s demands: publish the trust’s financial records, expand the probe, put it under the Supreme Court’s watch, and act against everyone found guilty. He also asked for a full account of the donations and offerings received in Lord Ram’s name.

The party’s case is that people linked to the BJP, RSS and VHP held roles at every level of the trust, its construction work and its donation handling. Ramesh questioned why trust figures Champat Rai and Gopal Rao, along with Anil Mishra, are listed as witnesses and not as accused. These are Congress’s allegations; the trust and the named individuals did not respond in the reports IPB reviewed.

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Whistleblower Claims Ramesh Cited

Ramesh pointed to media reports of a former RSS-linked accounts officer, Mahipal Singh, who allegedly flagged irregularities in 2021 and was removed after telling Rai and Rao. He also cited reports that engineer Dinanath Verma alleged a 40 per cent commission demand in construction contracts and was removed after he played a recording to Rai. He said counting-room posts were filled without any advertisement or interview, which Congress says points to nepotism.

He asked why the first report of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) went to the trust and why it has not been made public.

Eight Arrests So Far

The case began with an FIR in June, followed by an SIT set up by the Uttar Pradesh government. Eight counting-room employees have been arrested, and the SIT has filed a chargesheet, according to reports. Congress had made similar demands earlier this month, when Ramesh asked for a Supreme Court-monitored inquiry. IPB has not found any court proceeding on the party’s demand.

The row is likely to figure in the run-up to the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election. No response from the Prime Minister’s Office, the UP government or the BJP had been reported by Wednesday evening.

For more reports on the party’s campaigns, see the Congress tag page, and our earlier coverage of the Congress Bharat Summit in Hyderabad.

Source: Jairam Ramesh’s post on X, as reported by ANI and National Herald. Also based on reporting by Deccan Chronicle.

Image: National Herald.