Ex-Ram Temple official Champat Rai gets clean chit in donation theft probe weeks after resignation

The first report of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing alleged theft of donations at the Ayodhya Ram Temple has reportedly cleared former Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust general secretary Champat Rai of wrongdoing, people familiar with the developments said.

The Home Department has examined the report and forwarded it to the temple trust for further action. The final report reportedly does not name either Rai or former trust member Anil Mishra.

Both Rai and Mishra resigned from their positions on June 27 amid the probe into alleged irregularities in the handling of temple donations.

A second SIT, constituted under the Supreme Court’s supervision, is continuing the investigation.

The first SIT was formed on June 13 on Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s directions following a request from the temple trust. It was headed by Lucknow divisional commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant, with Lucknow Range Inspector General of Police Kiran S and Special Secretary (Finance) Neel Ratan Kumar as members.

The panel submitted its preliminary report to the state government on June 23, following which an FIR was registered at Ayodhya’s Shri Ram Janmabhoomi police station on June 25.

The FIR was filed on a complaint by trust member Krishna Mohan. Eight people named as accused — Avinash Shukla, Anukalp Mishra, Lavkush Mishra, Manish Kumar Yadav, Karunesh Pandey, Ramashankar Mishra, Subhash Srivastava and Ram Shankar Yadav alias Tinnu — have been arrested and are currently in jail.

The preliminary SIT inquiry reportedly found that cash thefts occurred around 70 times in the counting room between April 27 and June 5. CCTV footage allegedly showed employees concealing and taking away cash on multiple occasions.

The report also flagged violations of standard operating procedures followed by the trust and the State Bank of India, including inadequate frisking at entry and exit points.

The second SIT, headed by Kiran S, is now overseeing the investigation in the case registered in Ayodhya following the Supreme Court’s directions.

Ram temple donation controversy

The controversy emerged on June 7 when Samajwadi Party leader Tej Narayan ‘Pawan’ Pandey alleged that ₹5 crore to ₹7.5 crore from temple offerings had been siphoned off.

Following a request from the temple trust, the state government constituted the first SIT on June 13. The team conducted its preliminary inquiry in Ayodhya from June 15 to 20.

Investigators examined the entire donation-management process, including collection boxes, cash counting, storage, accounting, access controls and CCTV surveillance. The preliminary inquiry reportedly found prima facie irregularities in the handling of cash and valuables offered by devotees.

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust was established by the Government of India following the Supreme Court’s landmark 2019 verdict in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the formation of the trust in 2020 to oversee construction of the Ram temple.

According to the trust’s website, 12 of its 15 members were initially appointed by the government, while three others were selected at its first meeting.

The trust received donations totalling ₹82.78 crore between April 1, 2025, and February 28, 2026, according to details presented before its executive committee at a meeting in Ayodhya on March 21.