The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust recovered cash allegedly stolen from the Ram Temple’s donation boxes from the accused well before Ayodhya police registered an FIR in the matter. Sources said this, citing a letter written by the Trust’s then general secretary, Champat Rai. According to Ayodhya police, close to Rs 80 lakh has since been recovered from the accused.
In the letter, Rai claimed the seizure took place before the matter entered the public domain. He used the communication to distance himself from the Trust’s responsibilities while an inquiry into the controversy remains pending.
What the letter says
Sources familiar with the letter said Rai wrote that the accused had admitted to the alleged theft. They added that it was the Trust itself that had requested the Uttar Pradesh government to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT). Therefore, the SIT is the body now probing the case.
According to the letter, the alleged theft first came to light on the night of June 4. At that time, a trustee was informed during the counting process that five to six youths had stolen cash from the donation boxes.
CCTV footage was reviewed the following morning, and some suspects were identified from it.
Rather than lodging an FIR immediately, the letter states, the Trust first questioned the suspects directly. Rai claimed the accused and their family members returned the cash to the Trust by June 8. They also submitted written statements admitting their involvement.
It was only after the issue began attracting public attention that the Trust decided an independent investigation was necessary. The Trust then formally approached the state government to set up an SIT.
The FIR in the case was eventually filed on June 25. Rai’s letter was submitted two days later. The Trust treated the communication as his resignation, which was accepted at a meeting on July 6.
What next
With the SIT’s probe still ongoing and Rai’s letter now surfacing details about the Trust’s own handling of the recovery before police were formally brought in, the timeline he’s laid out is likely to draw fresh scrutiny. Specifically, there are questions over why the FIR was delayed by roughly three weeks after the cash was reportedly already returned.
Whether that gap becomes a focus of the SIT’s findings, alongside the broader questions around the temple’s donation counting process, will shape how this controversy develops. This happens as Sawan season brings renewed attention to the temple.
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