Why the Ayodhya Ram Temple donation row forced an SIT probe
As the Opposition and BJP trade political blame, at risk is the faith of millions of devotees who donate crores at the temple and keep Ayodhya's economy booming
The SIT, comprising Lucknow divisional commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant, inspector general of police (Lucknow range) Kiran S. and special secretary (finance) Neel Ratan Kumar, has been asked to submit a preliminary report within seven days and a final report within 15 days.
According to officials, the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra, the trust managing the Ayodhya Ram Temple, had itself requested chief minister Yogi Adityanath to order a probe. The trust maintained that a thorough investigation was needed to establish the truth and put an end to ‘rumours’ surrounding the handling of offerings at the temple.
The controversy erupted after reports alleged irregularities in donations received, and Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav questioned the functioning of the trust. Akhilesh said questions surrounding the donations needed answers. He asked why CCTV footage of counting of the offerings could not be made public and challenged the decision to involve private entities between the trust and a government bank in a sensitive activity like counting of donations.
The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra has strongly refuted the allegations. Its general secretary Champat Rai said the temple’s finances are regularly audited, both internally and by the State Bank of India (SBI), and that no significant irregularity had been found.
The issue escalated when Rajneesh Singh, a BJP leader from Ayodhya, wrote two letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking greater transparency in the trust’s financial operations. In the first letter, sent on June 9, Singh argued that the Ram Temple was a centre of faith for millions of people and any allegation regarding offerings, donations or the temple’s administration be subjected to an independent inquiry.
Two days on, Singh wrote another letter, seeking a detailed disclosure of the trust’s finances. Among other things, he sought details of the funds collected during the nationwide donation campaign for the temple’s construction, records of donations received through donation boxes, online transfers, cheques and cash, details of gold, silver and jewellery received by the temple, complete bank statements of the trust’s accounts since inception, expenditure on temple construction and administration, and copies of audit reports.
Matters intensified after police detained a temple employee, Lavkush Mishra, reportedly associated with the counting of offerings. During a search at his home, police reportedly recovered around Rs 10 lakh in cash. Investigators have not yet officially linked the recovered money to the allegations around donations. The matter is under investigation.
In the existing system, offerings made at the Ram Temple are counted by SBI employees in the presence of trust representatives under CCTV surveillance. The amount is entered into official records and kept in a locker inside the temple premises before being deposited in the trust’s SBI account the following day.
The controversy has invited strong political reactions. While Akhilesh has questioned the handling of donations, deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak of the ruling BJP accused the SP chief of spreading rumours about the Ram Temple. Congress MP Imran Masood, however, backed Akhilesh, arguing that he must have spoken on facts.
Awadhesh Prasad, the SP’s Lok Sabha MP from Faizabad (under which Ayodhya falls), alleged embezzlement in donations and claimed the people responsible for it were known to the public. On the other hand, Acharya Pramod Krishnam, who was formerly with the Congress, dismissed the Opposition’s allegations, saying Akhilesh and his party had historically opposed the Ram Temple movement and their claims could not be trusted.
Adding another layer to the row, former BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh made an intriguing remark. “I am a very weak man. If I tell the truth, I will get into a lot of trouble because they are very big people. We do not have the courage to tell the truth yet. When the time comes, we shall speak,” he said.
For the Adityanath government, the issue is particularly sensitive because the Ram Temple is one of the BJP’s most significant political and ideological projects. Any allegation about irregularities in donations made by millions of devotees carries the potential to trigger widespread public distrust and give the Opposition a handle against the ruling party in the run-up to state elections next year.
After the consecration ceremony in January 2024, the Ram Temple quickly became one of the most popular pilgrimages in the country. According to a study by the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Lucknow, more than 110 million visitors arrived in Ayodhya within the first six months of the temple’s inauguration. Data from the state tourism department suggests over 164 million pilgrims visited the temple in 2024, the number jumping to around 300 million in 2025.
Ayodhya, in future, is expected to draw 300-400 million visitors annually, giving it a place among the world’s busiest religious destinations. The surge has translated into an economic boom across sectors. Research by the SBI estimates that pilgrimage-driven economic output linked to the city exceeded Rs 4 lakh crore in 2024 alone. Donations made at the Ram Temple have also seen a sharp rise. Collections reportedly crossed Rs 3 crore in a single day soon after the consecration ceremony.
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The SIT, comprising Lucknow divisional commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant, inspector general of police (Lucknow range) Kiran S. and special secretary (finance) Neel Ratan Kumar, has been asked to submit a preliminary report within seven days and a final report within 15 days.
According to officials, the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra, the trust managing the Ayodhya Ram Temple, had itself requested chief minister Yogi Adityanath to order a probe. The trust maintained that a thorough investigation was needed to establish the truth and put an end to ‘rumours’ surrounding the handling of offerings at the temple.
The controversy erupted after reports alleged irregularities in donations received, and Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav questioned the functioning of the trust. Akhilesh said questions surrounding the donations needed answers. He asked why CCTV footage of counting of the offerings could not be made public and challenged the decision to involve private entities between the trust and a government bank in a sensitive activity like counting of donations.
The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra has strongly refuted the allegations. Its general secretary Champat Rai said the temple’s finances are regularly audited, both internally and by the State Bank of India (SBI), and that no significant irregularity had been found.
The issue escalated when Rajneesh Singh, a BJP leader from Ayodhya, wrote two letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking greater transparency in the trust’s financial operations. In the first letter, sent on June 9, Singh argued that the Ram Temple was a centre of faith for millions of people and any allegation regarding offerings, donations or the temple’s administration be subjected to an independent inquiry.
Two days on, Singh wrote another letter, seeking a detailed disclosure of the trust’s finances. Among other things, he sought details of the funds collected during the nationwide donation campaign for the temple’s construction, records of donations received through donation boxes, online transfers, cheques and cash, details of gold, silver and jewellery received by the temple, complete bank statements of the trust’s accounts since inception, expenditure on temple construction and administration, and copies of audit reports.
Matters intensified after police detained a temple employee, Lavkush Mishra, reportedly associated with the counting of offerings. During a search at his home, police reportedly recovered around Rs 10 lakh in cash. Investigators have not yet officially linked the recovered money to the allegations around donations. The matter is under investigation.
In the existing system, offerings made at the Ram Temple are counted by SBI employees in the presence of trust representatives under CCTV surveillance. The amount is entered into official records and kept in a locker inside the temple premises before being deposited in the trust’s SBI account the following day.
The controversy has invited strong political reactions. While Akhilesh has questioned the handling of donations, deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak of the ruling BJP accused the SP chief of spreading rumours about the Ram Temple. Congress MP Imran Masood, however, backed Akhilesh, arguing that he must have spoken on facts.
Awadhesh Prasad, the SP’s Lok Sabha MP from Faizabad (under which Ayodhya falls), alleged embezzlement in donations and claimed the people responsible for it were known to the public. On the other hand, Acharya Pramod Krishnam, who was formerly with the Congress, dismissed the Opposition’s allegations, saying Akhilesh and his party had historically opposed the Ram Temple movement and their claims could not be trusted.
Adding another layer to the row, former BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh made an intriguing remark. “I am a very weak man. If I tell the truth, I will get into a lot of trouble because they are very big people. We do not have the courage to tell the truth yet. When the time comes, we shall speak,” he said.
For the Adityanath government, the issue is particularly sensitive because the Ram Temple is one of the BJP’s most significant political and ideological projects. Any allegation about irregularities in donations made by millions of devotees carries the potential to trigger widespread public distrust and give the Opposition a handle against the ruling party in the run-up to state elections next year.
After the consecration ceremony in January 2024, the Ram Temple quickly became one of the most popular pilgrimages in the country. According to a study by the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Lucknow, more than 110 million visitors arrived in Ayodhya within the first six months of the temple’s inauguration. Data from the state tourism department suggests over 164 million pilgrims visited the temple in 2024, the number jumping to around 300 million in 2025.
Ayodhya, in future, is expected to draw 300-400 million visitors annually, giving it a place among the world’s busiest religious destinations. The surge has translated into an economic boom across sectors. Research by the SBI estimates that pilgrimage-driven economic output linked to the city exceeded Rs 4 lakh crore in 2024 alone. Donations made at the Ram Temple have also seen a sharp rise. Collections reportedly crossed Rs 3 crore in a single day soon after the consecration ceremony.
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