Fund Embezzlement: Champat Rai, Anil Mishra Resign from Ayodhya Ram Temple Trust, All 8 Named in FIR Arrested
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, June 26: While all the eight persons named in the First Information Report (FIR) filed on the alleged donation fund embezzlement have been arrested, Champat Rai, the general secretary of the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra, the trust that manages the Ayodhya Ram Janmabhoomi shrine, resigned from his post on Friday along with another key member of the Trust, Anil Mishra.
The resignations followed allegations levelled by various opposition leaders that the FIR against some petty employees involved in cash counting have been filed deliberately to protect the “big fishes” like Champat Rai involved in the alleged embezzlement. The allegations were made after the UP Special Investigation team (SIT) filed the FIR and later arrested all those named in it on Friday.
The 8 accused named in the FIR and arrested during the night between Thursday and Friday included some close aides of Champat Rai. The eight accused were Lavkush Mishra, Anukalp Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Manish Yadav, Ramshankar Yadav alias Tinnu, Subhash Chandra Srivastava and Karunesh Pandey. They have been booked under charges including theft, criminal breach of trust, cheating and criminal conspiracy under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. According to reports, Ramshankar Yadav alias Tinnu, was believed to have been very close to Champat Rai and was given all the powers to run the day-to-day management of the temple affairs.
Interestingly, the resignations came just minutes after the Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath again affirmed that no one involved in the donation theft would be spared while also hitting out at the opposition, claiming attempts to defame Ayodhya and hurt the sentiments of “Ram Bhakts” would not be tolerated.
Speaking at an event in Deoria, Yogi Adityanath said his government had constituted the SIT to probe the alleged embezzlement of Ram Temple donations, adding that action had already been initiated on the basis of its recommendations, including the arrest of eight accused.
The resignations come amid intensifying scrutiny over the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram Temple, following preliminary findings by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which reportedly identified serious irregularities in the handling, accounting and monitoring of devotees’ offerings.
Based on the SIT’s recommendations, the first FIR in the case has been registered. The complaint was lodged by Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust member Krishna Mohan, who was inducted into the trust in September 2025 following the demise of former trustee Kameshwar Chaupal.
The FIR has been registered on the directions of the Uttar Pradesh government under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Sections 306, 316(5), 317(4), 317(5), 61 and 3(5). As per the FIR accused were involved in the process of counting cash and valuables donated by devotees at the temple. Officials alleged that the accused had misappropriated donations collected through boxes installed on the temple premises.
Uttar Pradesh opposition parties questioned the FIR alleging the big people like Champat Rai, Dr Anil Mishra or temple construction in-charge Gopal Rao have been protected by the ruling BJP. Criticising the opposition parties Yogi Adityanath said, “Those who are raising objections today, their intentions are not good, these are the people who had rejected Lord Ram, they used to say that Ram never existed. These people kept denying Ayodhya. These are the same people who used to fire bullets at Shri Ram, you will tell us about faith,” he alleged.
The FIR was registered on Friday after the preliminary investigation by the SIT. The case has been registered under sections 306 (theft by clerk or servant of property in possession of master), 316 (criminal breach of trust), 317 (dishonestly receiving stolen property) and 61 (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, among other provisions.
The controversy over the alleged embezzlement of donations received at the Ram temple surfaced on June 7. The Uttar Pradesh government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) on June 13 at the request of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, which submitted its preliminary report to the government on June 23.
An FIR was registered on the night of June 25 based on the SIT’s recommendations, and Ayodhya police confirmed the arrests of the accused on Friday. The names of some of the accused had been circulating on social media ever since Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav raised the issue on June 7, after which it snowballed into a major political controversy, with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) also demanding registration of a criminal case.
Subhash Chandra Srivastava was reportedly in charge of the cash-counting staff, while the other accused were involved in counting cash, valuables or were associated with the process in different capacities. Among those named in the FIR is Ram Shankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav, who is said to be a former driver of the Trust’s general secretary Champat Rai. Tinnu denied any role in cash counting and blamed unnamed “jealous people” for the allegations. Other accused, including Lavkush Mishra and Anukalp Mishra, were also allegedly involved in counting cash and valuables received as donations at the temple.
Opposition parties have also amped up their attack on the government, alleging that many valuables are now missing. Besides, the temple trust received calls from devotees who have started asking about the silver and gold donations, including statues, they made for the Ram temple, sources said.
According to data presented by the Trust’s executive committee, it received donations worth ₹82.78 crore between April 1, 2025, and February 28, 2026. Besides, the Trust also earned Rs 138.03 crores as interest from its bank deposits during the same period. It maintains accounts with the State Bank of India and Punjab National Bank in Ayodhya.
Allegations of irregularities with the donations emerged earlier this month after Samajwadi Party MLA Pawan Pandey alleged that between ₹7-7.5 crore in donations had been stolen or embezzled. Other Opposition leaders later joined the chorus and sought transparency in the details of the donations.
The BJP-led UP government was quick to dismiss these allegations, terming them a “false narrative.” “Those trying to spread rumours about Shri Ram Temple are attempting to create a false narrative. The people of the state understand such politics,” deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak had said, accusing SP chief Akhilesh Yadav of spreading misinformation. Similarly, the temple trust also initially denied the allegations.
Things changed after the issue took a legal turn. A lawyer filed a petition on June 12 seeking a probe into the matter, a day after which the Uttar Pradesh government constituted the SIT on a request from the temple trust.
Advocate Mohit Ashok, who filed the plea, had reportedly claimed that he moved representations to the Uttar Pradesh Principal Secretary (Vigilance), the Ram Temple Trust, the CBI and other authorities on June 8. According to him, it was after his PIL that the state government ordered the SIT formation. The special probe team was tasked with submitting preliminary and final reports on the donation issue.
Claims of donations being misplaced are mounting amid the ongoing probe. Former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is in Ayodhya to visit the temple, on Thursday said items like sandals, jewelry, garlands and lamps donated for Lord Ram were stolen from the temple. “Diamonds and precious stones that devotees offered to God have been stolen, ₹200 crore in cash has been stolen, and even 200 kilograms of silver have been stolen,” he said.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Friday alleged that his party did not receive a receipt for a ₹1 crore donation it made to the temple trust. “We haven’t received the receipt for ₹1 crore. When the trust was formed, we gave a cheque of ₹1 crore. We gave the first silver brick weighing more than 25 kg,” he said. He also alleged attempts to shield Champat Rai and local BJP functionaries.
