Big fish being saved: Ayodhya temple theft accused's brother blames Champat Rai
Ayodhya temple theft accused Tinnu Yadav's brother Dinesh Yadav has claimed that his brother is being made a scapegoat in the Ram Temple donation case, while big fish were being protected in the probe.
The Ram Temple donation embezzlement case took a fresh turn on Thursday after Dinesh Yadav, brother of arrested accused Ramashankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav, claimed that his brother was being made a "scapegoat" while "big fish" were being protected, directly blaming Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust functionaries Champat Rai and Anil Mishra.
In his first television interview since Tinnu Yadav's arrest, Dinesh told India Today that his brother had an "unblemished" record and had worked with Champat Rai for nearly two decades.
"My brother never had any disputes or criminal cases. He worked with Champat Rai for around 20 years. Now he has been abandoned. The big people are saving themselves while small people are being framed," he said.
Rejecting the allegations against his brother as "completely false and baseless", Dinesh claimed that influential people were attempting to shield themselves by implicating Tinnu Yadav.
"They are portraying him as the biggest culprit, but what did he allegedly get? Just Rs 1 lakh. He is not someone involved in an Rs 18-20 lakh scam. Tinnu is being framed," he said, adding that no lawyer was willing to represent his brother and urging the government or the court to arrange legal aid.
The remarks came as the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust prepares for a key meeting next week to decide on the resignations of its general secretary Champat Rai and trustee Anil Mishra amid the controversy.
Police have already recorded Champat Rai's statement as part of the investigation and are also examining the role of nearly 400 private security personnel deployed at the temple complex.
The controversy began on June 7 after Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav alleged embezzlement of Ram Temple donations, an allegation initially rejected by the Trust.
The Uttar Pradesh government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) on June 13, whose preliminary findings led to an FIR on June 25 and the arrest of eight persons associated with the donation-counting process, including Avinash, Anukalp Mishra, Lavkush Mishra, Manish Kumar Yadav, Karunesh Pandey, Ramashankar Mishra, Subhash Srivastava and Ramashankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav.
Police have said nearly Rs 80 lakh in cash and foreign currency were recovered during the investigation, while the SIT found that Tinnu Yadav, a former driver of Champat Rai, possessed keys to multiple donation boxes in violation of prescribed procedures.
The investigation has since widened, with police scrutinising CCTV footage, duty rosters and security protocols to determine whether standard operating procedures governing temple donations were violated.
Meanwhile, the Congress has demanded that the SIT report be made public, accusing the BJP government of shielding those responsible, while Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has accused the Opposition of exploiting the issue for political gain.
The Ram Temple donation embezzlement case took a fresh turn on Thursday after Dinesh Yadav, brother of arrested accused Ramashankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav, claimed that his brother was being made a "scapegoat" while "big fish" were being protected, directly blaming Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust functionaries Champat Rai and Anil Mishra.
In his first television interview since Tinnu Yadav's arrest, Dinesh told India Today that his brother had an "unblemished" record and had worked with Champat Rai for nearly two decades.
"My brother never had any disputes or criminal cases. He worked with Champat Rai for around 20 years. Now he has been abandoned. The big people are saving themselves while small people are being framed," he said.
Rejecting the allegations against his brother as "completely false and baseless", Dinesh claimed that influential people were attempting to shield themselves by implicating Tinnu Yadav.
"They are portraying him as the biggest culprit, but what did he allegedly get? Just Rs 1 lakh. He is not someone involved in an Rs 18-20 lakh scam. Tinnu is being framed," he said, adding that no lawyer was willing to represent his brother and urging the government or the court to arrange legal aid.
The remarks came as the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust prepares for a key meeting next week to decide on the resignations of its general secretary Champat Rai and trustee Anil Mishra amid the controversy.
Police have already recorded Champat Rai's statement as part of the investigation and are also examining the role of nearly 400 private security personnel deployed at the temple complex.
The controversy began on June 7 after Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav alleged embezzlement of Ram Temple donations, an allegation initially rejected by the Trust.
The Uttar Pradesh government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) on June 13, whose preliminary findings led to an FIR on June 25 and the arrest of eight persons associated with the donation-counting process, including Avinash, Anukalp Mishra, Lavkush Mishra, Manish Kumar Yadav, Karunesh Pandey, Ramashankar Mishra, Subhash Srivastava and Ramashankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav.
Police have said nearly Rs 80 lakh in cash and foreign currency were recovered during the investigation, while the SIT found that Tinnu Yadav, a former driver of Champat Rai, possessed keys to multiple donation boxes in violation of prescribed procedures.
The investigation has since widened, with police scrutinising CCTV footage, duty rosters and security protocols to determine whether standard operating procedures governing temple donations were violated.
Meanwhile, the Congress has demanded that the SIT report be made public, accusing the BJP government of shielding those responsible, while Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has accused the Opposition of exploiting the issue for political gain.
