Ram Mandir donation row: Police conduct raids at multiple locations
What's the story
The Uttar Pradesh Police have launched a massive crackdown on the alleged embezzlement of donations for the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. On Sunday, police raided 10 locations linked to the eight accused in the case. The raids were conducted at around 7:00am and involved six police teams simultaneously searching different properties associated with those accused.
Investigation progress
Police questioning family members of accused
The police are also questioning the family members of the accused and have recovered important documents from Ramashankar Mishra's house. The investigation was launched after Samajwadi Party leader Tej Narayan 'Pawan' Pandey alleged on June 7 that donations worth ₹5 crore to ₹7.5 crore were misappropriated. An FIR was registered against eight named accused and several unidentified persons under relevant provisions of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Trust resignations
Controversy leads to resignation of temple trust officials
The controversy has also led to the resignation of Ram Temple trust general secretary Champat Rai and member Anil Mishra. The temple trust has assured devotees of a fair investigation and urged them not to believe "rumors or misinformation." It also emphasized that no irreparable damage has been done to the sanctity of the temple.
Ongoing investigation
Temple trust says will take measures to prevent incidents
The police are now looking into whether more people were involved in this alleged conspiracy. They are collecting additional evidence to strengthen their case. All eight accused remain in judicial custody as the investigation continues. The temple trust has said it will take measures to prevent any such incidents from happening in the future.