Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, June 14: Several non-BJP parties including the Congress, Samajwadi Party, Aam Aadmi Party and Shiv Sena have demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate into the charges of corruption in the purchase of a piece of land for construction of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple in Ayodhya.
Pointing out that the Ayodhya temple was a matter of faith for the millions of devotees in the country, the leaders of these parties said the prime minister Narendra Modi and the Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath must immediately clarify the situation and reply to the allegations to ally all misgivings among the people.
The Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded clarification from the Ram Janmabhoomi Trust and other leaders amid charges of corruption. He said the Ram Mandir was a matter of faith for the Shiv Sena and the common people of the country. “Lord Ram and the fight for the Ram Mandir is a matter of faith for us. For some, it is a political matter. The Trust formed for the construction of the temple should clarify if the allegations are true or false,” Raut said.
The SP and the AAP held two separate press conferences on Sunday alleging that the land was purchased by the Ram Mandir trust at an inflated price.
SP leader and former minister Pawan Pandey and AAP’s Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh sought a probe by the CBI and the ED alleging that a piece of land worth Rs 2 crore was purchased for Rs 18.5 crore.
Pawan Pandey claimed that two real estate dealers purchased 1.208 hectares of land in Bag Bjaisi village under Sadar tehsil of Ayodhya for Rs 2 crore on March 18. “Within minutes of the purchase, the same land was sold to Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra for Rs 18.5 crore,” Pandey said.
“How did the value of that piece of land increase from Rs 2 crore to Rs 18.5 crore within five minutes,” asked Pandey.
Reiterating the same allegation, Sanjay Singh called it a case of money laundering. “Champat Rai, the general secretary of the trust, with the help of member Anil Mishra bought the land. This is a case of money laundering, and the government should get it probed by the ED and CBI,” said Sanjay Singh in Lucknow.
SP leader Pawan Pandey said entries of the registered sale deed of the land showed one Baba Haridas sold the land to Sultan Ansari and Ravi Mohan Tiwari, who then sold it to the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.
Pawan Pandey claimed both the purchase and sale agreements listed Ayodhya Mayor Rishikesh Upadhyay and trust member Anil Mishra as witnesses.
“An RTGS (Real-time Gross Settlement), an instant bank transfer mode, of Rs 17 crore was made. The CBI should probe who made the payment and who received it,” said Pawan Pandey.
The Trust general secretary Champat Rai has, however, dismissed the allegations, calling them politically motivated.
Rai, who is also a senior leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), said, “We have been facing such allegations against us for 100 years. We were accused of killing Mahatma Gandhi. We do not fear allegations. I will study the allegations levelled at us and probe them.”
Calling it a political conspiracy, Ayodhya Mayor Rishikesh Upadhyay said, “I am a witness in a lot of deals. The deal was made years back. The trust will explain all this. The people who have objected have an issue with Lord Ram. One can check what the market rate is.”
A host of BJP leaders have joined the fray refuting the allegations. The UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Maurya said, “People whose hands are filled with blood of Ram followers should not advise us.”
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said misuse of donations by devotees was a sin and an insult to their faith. “Crores of people made their offerings at the feet of God out of their faith and devotion. Misuse of those donations is unrighteous and is a sin and an insult to their faith,” she said in a tweet in Hindi.
Demanding an explanation, Sena’s Raut said “The temple’s ‘bhoomipujan’ ceremony was also attended by Yogi Adityanath and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat. They should also speak out. Ram temple is a matter of faith. People have made donations out of faith. Even Shiv Sena had contributed ₹1 crore to the Trust,” he further added.
Raut said he spoke to Sanjay Singh and was ‘shocked by the evidence’ provided by Singh. Raut also pointed out that the BJP appointed the members of the Trust. He said the Shiv Sena should be included in the members’ body as they were also an important part of the Ram Mandir agitation. “Representatives of organizations like the Shiv Sena should have been included in the body as the Sena had participated in the agitation for the construction of the Lord Ram’s temple.”
Backing the demand for a central agency probe, the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief Om Prakash Rajbhar alleged that the BJP and the RSS have made the shrine a “medium of business.”
Speaking to reporters, Rajbhar said, “The temple is a symbol of faith for common people but the BJP and the RSS have made it a medium of business.”
Targeting Modi and Adityanath, Rajbhar, a former BJP ally, said, “Both the leaders claim zero tolerance (for corruption). Modi ji and Yogi ji should make it clear as to when a case will be registered against the trustee of the Ram Mandir Trust and when the accused persons will be sent to jail.”
“The sentiments of crores of devotees have been hurt by this scandal,” he said.
