RSS meet expresses 'deep anguish' over alleged Ram temple donation theft

RSS leaders asked the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust to institute stringent mechanisms to prevent a recurrence of such incidents

At the end of their three-day meeting in Karnataka’s Belagavi on Sunday, the top leadership of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Sunday collectively expressed “deep anguish” over the alleged financial irregularities uncovered in the counting of offerings from Aodhya’s Ram temple donation boxes.

 

The RSS meeting of its top leadership asked the trust that manages the Ram temple to ensure that that such an episode does not recur, which would deeply wound the faith, devotion, and sentiments of millions of Ram devotees worldwide.

 

A total of 226 RSS leaders attended the RSS’s Akhil Bharatiya Prant Pracharak meeting, including RSS chief chief Mohan Bhagwat, his deputy Dattatreya Hosabale and the leadership of the organisation’s provincial units in the country.

 

The RSS usually holds a press conference at the end of its All India Prant Pracharak meetings, which didn’t take place on this occasion. The RSS’s publicity department chief Sunil Ambekar issued a press statement.

 

According Ambekar’s press statement, the RSS leadership “voiced strong confidence that the ongoing probe by the Uttar Pradesh Special Investigation Team (SIT) and local police, initiated at the formal request of the temple trust, is rapidly progressing toward a decisive turning point.”

 

The RSS leadership called upon the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, which manages the Ram temple, to institute stringent, foolproof mechanisms to prevent a repeat of such incidents. It emphasised that the trust must ensure such lapses never recur as it would deeply wound the faith, devotion, and sentiments of millions of Ram devotees worldwide, Ambekar said in his press statement.

 

The alleged embezzlement of Ram temple donations came to light on June 7. An FIR was registered on June 25 following a preliminary report by the SIT, which was constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government. Eight people associated with the temple's donation and counting process have been arrested in the case, and the investigation is continuing. Champat Rai and Anil Mishra have quit from the trust.

 

The trust in its meeting on July 6 also set up a three-member panel to pick a chief executive officer (CEO) to oversee the functioning of the temple management. It appointed Krishna Mohan, a former Indian Forest Service Officer and RSS office bearer, as the interim general secretary in place of Champat Rai. The trust will meet again on July 22.

 

The RSS’s first statement on the issue came on July 3, when Hosabale in a video statement termed the alleged embezzlement of Ayodhya’s Ram temple donations as “unfortunate”, which has “deeply hurt the sentiments and faith of the entire society and Ram devotees”. It is “essential that anyone found guilty after the investigation faces severe punishment,” he said. Hosabale underscored that the Uttar Pradesh government constituted the SIT at the “earnest request of the temple trust. He called upon the “the entire Hindu society to display necessary patience and restraint during this difficult moment.” He appealed to Hindu society to “thwart the conspiracies of anti-Hindu and anti-national forces seeking to malign the Hindu dharma and society by exploiting this unfortunate incident.”

 

The RSS’s Belagavi meeting reviewed the organisation’s activities since March. The meeting discussed several contemporary issues. While primarily focusing on the updates of Census 2027 in the context of the challenges that demographic imbalance poses, it also expressed deep concern over the rising menace of drug abuse, and emphasised the urgent need for prioritise anti-addiction initiatives. The meeting also outlined plans for upcoming programmes to commemorate the 650th birth anniversary of the 16th Century saint and mystic poet Sant Ravidas.

 

Punjab, which is scheduled for Assembly polls in February-March, next year, has a serious drug problem. Sant Ravidas is a venerable religious icon in Punjab. The Bharatiya Janata Party is keen to expand its footprint in Punjab.

 

Ram Temple Construction Committee Chairman Nripendra Mishra on Sunday said that the responsibilities and powers of the first-ever CECO will be determined by the temple Trust. The primary responsibility of the CEO will be to uphold the faith of the devotees in the trust, he said. “The new CEO will also oversee financial arrangements," Mishra told reporters in Ayodhya, adding that there won't be any "government interference" in the functioning of the trust or its CEO.

 

The Opposition INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) will seek to corner the Centre in the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament over issues like the Ram temple donation case. The Monsoon Session of Parliament is scheduled from July 20 to August 13.

 

On Saturday, Congress leaders addressed press conferences at 26 places across the country, where they claimed the SIT report into the "donations embezzlement" is "just a tip of the iceberg" and alleged that the manner in which the "big fish" are "roaming freely" indicated they enjoy the "full protection and blessings of Prime Minister Modi".

 

The Congress on Sunday questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "silence" on the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya and said the country will never forgive the BJP-RSS for the "betrayal of faith".

 

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh reiterated the party's demands for an independent investigation supervised by the Supreme Court, a forensic audit, a fixation of accountability and strict action against the guilty.

 

Even the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted ostensibly to resolve the matter has been forced to acknowledge the daily disappearance of lakhs of rupees in offerings, Ramesh said. "The theft of donations at the Lord Shri Ram Temple cannot be limited to just a few employees; yet, this government - hostile to the cause of Ram - is intent on shielding the real culprits," he alleged.

 

Government efforts to suppress the matter make it evident that Champat Rai and other temple trustees harbour deep secrets; this is why the Modi government is taking no action against them, and their influence remains intact, Ramesh said.