Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 1: In a major revelation in the Ram Mandir donation theft case, the Ayodhya Police probe has found that the maximum theft at the Ram Temple took place during the Maha Kumbh Mela in early 2025.
According to the Ayodhya Police investigation, a few of the accused had allegedly been stealing small amounts even before the Kumbh, but it intensified during the Maha Kumbh Mela with investigators claiming the unprecedented surge in offerings during the period was exploited by the insiders and staff involved in the scam with coordinated operation for siphoning of donations from the Ram Mandir.
A group of accused individuals exploited the overwhelming volume of devotees during the Kumbh to steal. Knowing CCTV blind spots, they systematically hid cash in washrooms and sneaked the donations out.
Eight accused have been arrested by the SIT so far: Avinash Shukla, Anukalp Mishra, Lav Kush Mishra, Manish Kumar Yadav, Karunesh Pandey, Ramashankar Mishra, Subhash Srivastava, and Ramshankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav. The accused were grilled were for several hours by the SIT on Tuesday. Police claim the entire conspiracy was hatched by all the eight accused.
Investigators have identified brothers-in-law Lav Kush Mishra and Anukalp Mishra as the alleged key beneficiaries of the theft. The probe suggests they diverted the highest amount of money and later invested it in real estate. More than six properties linked to the duo have already been traced, police said.
The Ayodhya Police is taking help from the Income Tax Department to examine the financial transactions and properties of the accused to verify the financial trail, the accused’s assets and bank transactions. Officials also plan to approach the Enforcement Directorate to conduct a detailed investigation into the money trail.
The investigation has additionally brought the role of some State Bank of India (SBI) employees under scrutiny. During the investigation, the role of some SBI employees has also come under the scanner. Ayodhya Police will also write to the Enforcement Directorate to probe the money trail and financial transactions in depth.
The counting of cash donations at the temple is authorised by SBI, which has engaged a private agency for the job. The cash offerings are made in four donation boxes and counted by a team of 14 people, including 11 bank staff and three from the temple trust.
The maximum cash was recovered from the Kaushalpuri hideout of accused Avinash Shukla, police said. The location was a yoga centre linked to Avinash Shukla’s brother Abhishek. Seema Tiwari, who runs the yoga centre, said police raided the premises on June 5 and recovered a large amount of cash.
Four boxes belonging to Abhishek were kept at the yoga centre. The cash was hidden inside blankets in these boxes. One box had ‘Ram Rajya Kosh’ written on it. According to Seema Tiwari, when Abhishek was asked about the raid and the cash, he claimed that his brother Avinash Shukla was in the drug trade and that was why the raid took place.
Three days ago, Ayodhya Police visited the homes of all the accused for the probe. During this, cash was recovered from Tinnu Yadav’s house. Tinnu Yadav was also the driver of former Trust general secretary Champat Rai. Sources said the probe found that while Tinnu Yadav had one key to the counting room, the second key was with bank staff. The money was allegedly siphoned off through collusion with bank staff. Tinnu Yadav and the bank employees took a share of the stolen money, sources said.
Banking details were collected from the homes of all the accused, and records of their movable and immovable assets were obtained. The probe into the offering theft found transactions in the bank accounts of the accused that were far higher than their income.
A year-long review of their accounts revealed transactions involving amounts much larger than their earnings or known sources of income. Police have also collected bank documents and records relating to the movable and immovable assets of all the accused. A review of their financial records over the past year allegedly revealed transactions that were disproportionately higher than their known income. According to investigators, the highest cash recovery in the case was Rs 89 lakh, made after accused Avinash Shukla allegedly disclosed its location. Police said the amount had already been recovered by the temple trust before the FIR was filed.
