Ayodhya, July 1: A special investigation team (SIT) has intensified its probe into the embezzlement of donations at the Ram Temple. Recent revelations indicate a deep-rooted conspiracy among temple staff, who allegedly violated rules and betrayed the trust of devotees for personal gain.
The latest findings reveal that cash amounting to ₹79.85 lakh has been recovered from seven out of eight accused in the case. While reports suggest that greedy employees may have stolen crores of rupees and valuable items from the temple, the recorded theft stands at ₹79.85 lakh.
These disclosures came to light after the SIT presented documents in court. Publicly available records show that significant amounts of cash were seized from Lovkush and Anukalp Mishra. Ram Shankar Yadav, also known as Tinnu Yadav, was caught hiding ₹1 lakh in cash and has emerged as a prominent figure in the alleged heist.
According to the documents, ₹14.25 lakh was recovered from Lovkush Mishra and ₹16.82 lakh from Anukalp Mishra. Another accused, Avinash Shukla, had a substantial amount of cash amounting to ₹20.39 lakh, which was illegally obtained from temple donations. During the investigation, police also found foreign currency in his possession.
The cash seized from him included over 3,600 notes of ₹500, more than 500 notes of ₹200, and various denominations of ₹10, ₹20, and ₹50, indicating that he amassed this wealth through temple donations.
Karunesh Pandey, another accused, was found with cash totaling ₹18.07 lakh, including notes of ₹500, ₹200, ₹50, ₹10, and ₹20. Another suspect, Ramashankar Mishra, acquired illegal assets worth ₹7.32 lakh, including silver and other precious metals, with cash in similar denominations.
Two other accused, Manish Kumar Yadav and Ram Shankar Yadav (Tinnu), were found with ₹2 lakh and ₹1 lakh, respectively, allegedly stolen from devotees’ offerings.
Following the formation of the SIT panel, police arrested eight individuals: Avinash Shukla, Anukalp Mishra, Lovkush Mishra, Manish Kumar Yadav, Karunesh Pandey, Ramashankar Mishra, Subhash Srivastava, and Ram Shankar Yadav (Tinnu). They are all accused of conspiring to manipulate cash and valuables from the donation boxes of the Ram Temple.
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