- By Surarika Das
- Tue, 23 Jun 2026 04:37 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
- A three-member SIT was formed to investigate the case linked to the Ram Mandir donation theft case.
- The authorities will set up a separate control room for the CCTV cameras installed in the confidential room.
- The lapses occurred due to collusion or negligence on the part of bank employees as well.
Ram Mandir Donation Theft Case: The three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), probing the alleged theft in the Ayodhya Ram Mandir donations, submitted its preliminary report to the Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday.
The report was submitted by SIT member and Lucknow Divisional Commissioner (LDC) Vijay Vishwas Pant to Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Sanjay Prasad. They said the SIT probe is still underway, and further facts are being gathered.
While the contents of the report have not been made public, a report by Jagran.com stated that multiple lapses in financial transparency have been noted by the SIT during the probe and have been submitted to the UP government.
SIT member and Lucknow Divisional Commissioner (LDC) Vijay Vishwas Pant said that the investigating team is trying to submit its final report within the next 10 to 15 days.
"Based on the information that has come to light so far and the facts available with us, we have submitted the first report today. This is only the preliminary report and the final report will be submitted after some time," Pant said.
The donation embezzlement case stemmed from allegations by Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, who, on June 7, cited reports claiming that crores of rupees from donations offered at the Ram Temple were missing and urged the courts to take cognisance of the matter.
Following the allegations, the UP government had on June 13 constituted the SIT on a request from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.
New Donation Counting Rules Introduced
Meanwhile, amid the ongoing SIT investigation, the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has overhauled the cash-counting process and implemented strict protocols for the deployment of on-duty personnel.
The confidential room inside the Passenger Facilitation Centre (PFC), where the daily donations are counted, has been placed under heavy surveillance. A dedicated CCTV control room has been set up with direct access granted to the local police to monitor activities in real-time.
To prevent leaks during transit, a mandatory cross-verification system has also been introduced. Before the collected cash leaves for the bank, three authorised individuals must count, cross-check, and sign off on the amount.
A final matching protocol will then be conducted at the bank branch itself. Furthermore, all counting staff are now subjected to mandatory physical searches upon leaving the room.
| Previous Protocols | New Rules | |
| Staff Screening | Lax or completely missing exit checks. | Mandatory 100% physical search at both entry and exit points. |
| CCTV Monitoring | Localised cameras with vulnerable access. | A dedicated control room with real-time video feeds shared directly with the police. |
| Cash Transit | Unverified transfer from temple boxes to banks. | End-to-end video recording of cash movement; triple-signature cross-verification before bank delivery. |
| Staffing Status | Same team managing long-term finances. | Counting staff reassigned to non-cash duties pending a permanent bank/trust reshuffle. |
Former Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police Surya Kumar Shukla said that there was a mistake somewhere in the counting of the donated cash. This may have been due to collusion or negligence on the part of bank employees.
"These employees failed to properly discharge their responsibilities. Taking advantage of this, some employees, driven by greed, committed acts that violated people's faith. Both at the trust and at the bank levels, there was an oversight," he said.