All the eight accused in the Ram Temple donation embezzlement case have been sent to judicial custody

The FIR, lodged at the request of Krishna Mohan, a member of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, follows the recommendations made in the preliminary report of the SIT compiled by the UP government to investigate the allegations. File image

Eight persons named as accused in a First Information Report (FIR) regarding alleged misappropriation of donations received at the Ram temple in Ayodhya have been arrested and sent to judicial custody till June 29.

“At the Ram temple in Ayodhya, devotees were donating money in donation boxes. The money was allegedly misappropriated and stolen by the trust’s employees,” public prosecutor KC Verma told reporters outside a court in Ayodhya. “The eight accused will be produced before the Special Court on Monday to deal with corruption cases. A total of ₹ 79.85 crore has been recovered from them,” he added. Heavy police security was deployed at the court during the proceedings.

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The accused – Lavkush Mishra, Anukalp Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Manish Yadav, Ramshankar Yadav alias Tinnu, Subhash Chandra Srivastava, Avinash Shukla and Karunesh Pandey – have been charged with theft, breach of trust, cheating and criminal conspiracy under several sections of the Bharatiya Bharatiya (Nyaya Bharatiya). According to the FIR, these accused were responsible for counting cash and valuables donated by devotees at the temple.

Rumors of resignation

Among the arrested accused are close aides of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust (SRJTK) general secretary Champat Rai, who is said to have resigned from a key post.

Yogi Adityanath at the Ram Mandir donation line

Yogi Adityanath at Ram Mandir Donations Row | Video Credit: The Hindu

However, Vishva Hindu Parishad social media chief Rakesh Pandey denied the rumors as fake news. “One should have waited for the official information to come but the entire media is ruining the media world by publishing such fake news. Not a single person has published a copy of the resignation,” Mr. Pandey said in a post on X.

“Responsibility cannot be avoided”

The Uttar Pradesh opposition parties claimed that while the FIR indicted employees of the trust, the real fanatics behind the alleged scam – such as Mr Champat Rai, fellow SRJTK trustee Anil Mishra and Gopal Rao responsible for the construction of the temple – were shielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“We will launch a campaign against this massive corruption and try to protect powerful people,” said UP Congress chief Ajay Rai. “The real culprits are the Ram Temple trust members like Champat Rai, they should be arrested immediately. The Uttar Pradesh government cannot shirk responsibility and protect Champat Rai Bansal, the main man behind Ayodhya corruption,” he added.

The FIR was registered on Thursday (June 25) after a preliminary investigation by a special investigation team (SIT) appointed by the Uttar Pradesh government.

‘Belief Manipulation’

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath promised to push for accountability. “Damaging people’s faith cannot be tolerated. As soon as the SIT report was received, immediate action was initiated,” he said. “I assure you, and I have said it before, that we will separate the truth from the lie. Anyone who tampers with people’s faith will have to face the consequences. No one can get such a free hand.”

He insisted that no “allusions” should be made to the holy city of Ayodhya or its presiding deity. “I was visiting Ayodhya on June 19. Even then I said that Ayodhya is a symbol of faith of all of us and a symbol of Indian Sanatan Dharma. Do not cast insults on Ayodhya. Learn to defend the dignity of Bhagwan Shri Ram. As for the news that was coming from Ayod, our actions were also received soon to start,” said Mr. Adityanath.

The CM lashed out at critics from the opposition Congress and Samajwadi Party. “One side said Ram never existed, which meant they didn’t even want to accept Ayodhya. They continued to fight the case in courts and raised an army of lawyers. They opposed the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi movement and the construction of the temple,” he said.

Published – 26 Jun 2026 11:14 IST