SIT files 60,000-page charge sheet against eight in Ayodhya Ram temple donation theft case

A Special Investigation Team Wednesday filed a voluminous 60,000-page charge sheet against eight people in the alleged Ram temple donation theft case before a local court in Ayodhya, detailing its investigation into the suspected pilferage of cash offerings and the financial dealings of the accused.

The charge sheet, including annexures and supporting documents, is among the most extensive filed by the Uttar Pradesh Police and covers the handling and counting of cash collected at the Ram temple, its movement to banks and the accounting and verification of valuable donations. The filing came two days after the Uttar Pradesh government assured the Supreme Court that the SIT would submit the charge sheet by September 25, when the statutory 90-day period from the first arrest was due to end.

105 instances flagged

The SIT, constituted following Supreme Court directions and headed by Lucknow Range Inspector General of Police Kiran S, found evidence of 105 alleged instances of unauthorised removal or concealment of cash during the counting process inside the temple premises, according to officials familiar with the investigation.

Investigators, however, found no evidence to suggest that valuables were stolen while being transported from the temple to the bank.

The prosecution documents include details of bank transactions, properties, assets and other financial dealings linked to the accused. Findings of a separate forensic audit ordered as part of the probe have also been incorporated into the case records.

The investigation sought to reconstruct how donations moved from collection and counting points at the temple to the banking system, while examining whether the amounts recorded and deposited corresponded with the offerings received.

Eight accused arrested

Eight people have been arrested in connection with the case. Investigators had earlier scrutinised several years of banking records and examined accounts linked to those involved in handling cash and valuables donated by devotees.

The probe also involved scrutiny of CCTV footage, digital records, attendance details, cash deposit registers and other documents connected with the donation-counting process.

During the investigation, police had recovered nearly Rs 80 lakh from the eight arrested accused. Foreign currency was also recovered during searches, according to investigators. The SIT subsequently widened its examination of the financial trail to determine whether money allegedly removed from donations had been deposited, transferred or otherwise reflected in accounts linked to the accused.

The case had prompted extensive scrutiny of the systems used for collecting, counting, recording and depositing donations at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi temple, which receives cash as well as gold, silver, jewellery and other valuables from devotees.

SC had sought progress

The investigation had recently come under the Supreme Court’s scrutiny over the approaching deadline for filing the charge sheet. The Uttar Pradesh government informed the court Monday that the SIT would complete the filing on or before September 25.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had told the court that the 90-day statutory period from the first arrest was approaching and that failure to file the charge sheet within the stipulated period could make the accused eligible to seek default bail.

The submission came as the investigation continued into the alleged irregularities in the handling of donations and the systems in place for safeguarding offerings made by devotees.

With the charge sheet now before the Ayodhya court, the case will move to the next stage of judicial proceedings. The allegations against the eight accused will be subject to adjudication, and the filing of the charge sheet does not establish their guilt.