The Ram Mandir in Ayodhya has been a cause of news since its very inception, perhaps even before that. However, recently, news has come forward of an alleged scam that the temple could be involved in, related to donations.
When the Ram Mandir was inaugurated in January 2024, under major aplomb and celebrations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was hailed for this achievement. Politicians, celebrities, influencers, the literal who’s who of the Indian society, present in lakhs worth of designer clothing, it had felt like a momentous occasion. Millions of citizens further watched the entire event on their television.
A nationwide public donation campaign raised over Rs 5,400 crore for its construction, with ordinary people across India giving whatever they could, from a few rupees to lakhs. However, now, allegations have surfaced that crores of rupees from the temple’s donations may have been systematically siphoned off, and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been established to investigate this matter.
What Is The Ram Mandir Donation Scam?
The scam has come under the spotlight after news broke about the Uttar Pradesh government forming a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the alleged misappropriation of donations. On June 15, the team reached the steps of the temple to look into the case. The team was formed after the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra raised the request to investigate the allegations of missing donation funds of the temple.
This could be a case of crores of funds being mishandled, since, as per the annual report for FY 2024–25 in September 2025, released by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, the temple saw earnings of nearly Rs. 327 crore during the year. This includes donation offerings of Rs 153 crore, while interest income accounted for Rs 173 crore.
The first one to bring attention to this topic was Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, who, in a tweet made on June 7, 2026, claimed that crores of rupees offered as donations at the Ram temple were missing.
In his tweet he wrote, “समस्त विश्व में भगवान राम के उपासकों के लिए ये एक बेहद संवेदनशील समाचार है कि ‘राम मंदिर’ के चढ़ावे की करोड़ों की रकम गायब पायी गई है। ये मंदिर ट्रस्ट के लिए अत्यंत शर्मनाक स्थिति है। कोई भी सफ़ाई देने के लिए सामने नहीं आना चाहता है। न्यायालय से स्वतः संज्ञान लेने की माँग है क्योंकि इसका सीधा संबंध वैश्विक स्तर पर समस्त सनातनी समाज की प्रभु राम में गहरी आस्था से जुड़ा है। सरकार की चुप्पी संदिग्ध है।”
“This is an extremely sensitive piece of news for devotees of Lord Ram across the entire world: crores of rupees in offerings to the ‘Ram Mandir’ have been found missing. This is an utterly shameful situation for the temple trust. No one is coming forward to offer any explanation. There is a demand for the court to take suo motu cognizance, as this is directly linked to the deep faith in Lord Ram held by the entire Sanatan society at a global level. The government’s silence is suspicious.”
He further remarked that “If there is theft in donations, complaints are bound to follow,” along with also raising questions about how authorities were not making the CCTV footage of the counting of the offerings public.
Read More: Why Is A Karnataka Temple Priest Being Told To Return 10 Years Of Excess Salary?
The temple Trust’s initial response, delivered by its general secretary Champat Rai, was to just dismiss these allegations and stated that the Trust undergoes periodic internal audits of its work.
In a statement quoted by The Indian Express, he said, “Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust undergoes internal audits of various works from time to time. An audit also happens of the hundi counting room. The audit of the hundi counting room is jointly undertaken by the trustees and workers of the Trust and the employees of the State Bank of India. This process goes on for several days. The same exercise is currently underway. So far, nothing noteworthy has come to anyone’s attention.”
However, this response didn’t calm the matter down; instead, it led to more people wanting answers and transparency into how the temple operates. Rajneesh Singh, a BJP leader from Ayodhya, addressed the issue in two letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking answers.
According to a Firstpost report, in his second letter, he wrote, “Crores of devotees from India and abroad have contributed their faith and lifelong earnings for the construction of the Ram Mandir. This wealth does not belong to any individual, group, or institution, but is a symbol of the devotion of crores of devotees,” further stressing how there should be a public disclosure of the funds donated to the temple.
Speaking to The Print, Senior BJP leader Vinay Katiyar also commented on this, saying, “This is a serious matter. Thousands of people made sacrifices for the Ram Temple movement, and many went to jail. Former Chief Minister Kalyan Singh had even resigned from his post. Such people (those responsible for theft) have no place in the trust and should be removed.” Adding, “Sab ke sab chor hain, jo bhi is samay hain…(all of them are thieves).”
According to reports, the police arrested two employees of the temple after they found Rs. 10 lakh at the residence of one man identified as Lav Kush Mishra. Mishra’s father, speaking with The Telegraph, believes otherwise, saying, “I live in Ghaziabad and arrived here only a few days ago. The police had already detained my son. I don’t think my son kept the money here; someone did it to implicate him and save themselves.”
On Monday, the SIT reached the Ram temple complex and set up camp there, with investigations running for almost eight hours. The team inquired about the details of the staff employed for counting cash by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust all the way since the temple opened for devotees on January 23, 2024.
They also examined the registers that record daily cash counts, the vault where the cash is locked afterwards, and CCTV data boxes, specifically footage of the cash-counting process.
The team is led by Lucknow divisional commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant, inspector general of police (Lucknow range) Kiran S and special secretary (Finance) Neel Ratan and has to submit a preliminary report to the government in seven days and the final report in 15 days.
According to reports, many of the Trust employees are happy with this probe, with one saying, “As the probe has begun, those behind the scam and their so-called mentors will be exposed.”
Apparently, this is due to several of them feeling unhappy with the wage disparity between internal staff and outsourced staff.
The internal staff employed by the Trust was being paid somewhere between Rs. 10,000 to 15,000, while the outsourced staff was getting Rs. 28,000 per month.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: The Hindu, The New Indian Express, Firstpost
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This post is tagged under: Ayodhya, Ayodhya Ram temple, ram mandir, Ram Temple, Religion, religious beliefs, Ayodhya Ram temple donation, Ayodhya Ram temple scam, Ayodhya Ram temple donation scam, SIT, Ayodhya Ram mandir, Ayodhya Ram mandir donation, Ayodhya Ram mandir donation scam, Uttar Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh government, Akhilesh Yadav, Special Investigation Team, Ram mandir donation row, Ram mandir donation controversy, Ram mandir, Ram Mandir donation news, Ram Mandir ayodhya news
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