Ram Temple Leadership Shake‑Up After Donation Theft Allegations

Sun Sep 06 2026 08:05:49 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

The Ayodhya temple’s trust swaps leaders after accusations that millions of rupees were stolen from donation boxes. Short‑form recap of the controversy, investigation and future steps.

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has replaced its general secretary amid accusations that a large amount of donations were misappropriated. A Special Investigation Team was set up by the state, and an SIT report led to police filing a charge involving eight people. The trust now names a retired forest officer as interim secretary and promises a new leadership panel. Overall, 5.82 bn rupees have come in, 3.19 bn has been spent on temple upkeep—yet the question of how much was stolen remains clouded by pledges, court petitions and public distrust. The temple officially held a meeting on July 22 to review the SIT findings.

Truncated surname of leaders features in Ayodhya temple scandal

The Ram temple’s formal board is switching up its leadership after allegations surfaced that surpluses from donations were stolen.

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, which organizes the shrine in Ayodhya, accepted the resignation of General Secretary Champat Rai and appointed interim chief Krishna Mohan, a retired forest officer and RSS member. An interim CEO role was also created.

The row began after a former accounts supervisor, who had been fired after raising concerns, claimed that between 70 m and 5 bn rupees had vanished from donation boxes. The state government set up a three‑member Special Investigation Team (SIT) and the police filed an alleged embezzlement case naming eight people. They have been arrested and are still under questioning.

Govind Dev Giri, the trust treasurer, stated the shrine has received 5.82 bn rupees ($61 m) of offerings in its first four years, spending 3.19 bn rupees ($33 m) on maintenance. He stressed the corruption leveled was by those trusted by the late Rai and called for strict action.

Legal petitions have been filed in the state High Court and the Supreme Court, demanding a federal police investigation. Future meetings are planned for July 22 while the police’s final report is awaited.

For more coverage, see Indian Express and NDTV.

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