Akhilesh Yadav questions Yogi Adityanath's Ayodhya visit amid Ram Mandir row
The exchange between the two fierce political rivals in Uttar Pradesh has sharpened the political row over whether the SIT can investigate independently.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday questioned Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's visit to Ayodhya while a special investigation team is probing alleged embezzlement of funds at the Ram Temple. He also said no attempt should be made to influence the probe and claimed the chief minister appeared less confident in his speech and downcast in his outlook.
The remarks came hours after Adityanath defended the state government's decision to order the SIT probe into allegations of misappropriation of donation funds at the temple.
In Ayodhya, he said the investigation would bring out the truth and asked people not to fall for what he called attempts to defame Ayodhya, the temple and the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.
In a post on X, Yadav asked whether Friday's programme had been planned suddenly or fixed on the same day the SIT was constituted.
He wrote, "Why did today's speech contain more threats than statements? Was today's programme planned suddenly, or was it decided on the very day the SIT was constituted?"
He also asked why, according to sources, local BJP MLAs and office-bearers had pushed for the event at short notice to protect the party's political position, adding that otherwise "not just the Ayodhya division but the BJP's rout across the whole of Uttar Pradesh is considered certain".
Yadav said, "No attempt should be made to influence the work of the SIT through physical visits and inspections." He alleged that the SIT was already under suspicion because of its "controversial members" and "tainted image".
He also asked, "Why did the face appear downcast today? Why was there a deliberate effort to raise the pitch of the voice, yet no sign of self-confidence? Why did he not meet his close associates this time?" Yadav further said it was not enough to separate "milk from water" and that there must be a full accounting of "gold and silver".
He added that apart from donated money and priceless stones, there should also be an account of the valuable metals and jewellery offered at the temple. Earlier in the day, he had also called for another SIT to probe "someone's record-breaking" visits to Ayodhya in an apparent jibe at Adityanath.
Responding to the row, Adityanath said in Ayodhya that if the Ram Temple could be built after a wait of 500 years, people could wait 15 more days for the SIT investigation to establish the truth.
He said attempts were being made to defame Ayodhya, the temple and the trust, and urged people not to become part of such "conspiracies". "At the trust's request, we have ordered an SIT investigation and I can assure you that this probe will bring the absolute truth to light. There is no doubt about that," he said.
The Uttar Pradesh government on June 13 set up a three-member SIT after a request from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra to investigate allegations of misappropriation of donation funds at the temple.
The probe was ordered after Yadav, on June 7, cited reports alleging multi-crore wrongdoing in donation money at the Ram Temple and urged the courts to take cognisance of the matter.
The latest exchange between Yadav and Adityanath followed that order, with both sides focusing on the SIT probe and the allegations linked to temple donations.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday questioned Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's visit to Ayodhya while a special investigation team is probing alleged embezzlement of funds at the Ram Temple. He also said no attempt should be made to influence the probe and claimed the chief minister appeared less confident in his speech and downcast in his outlook.
The remarks came hours after Adityanath defended the state government's decision to order the SIT probe into allegations of misappropriation of donation funds at the temple.
In Ayodhya, he said the investigation would bring out the truth and asked people not to fall for what he called attempts to defame Ayodhya, the temple and the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.
In a post on X, Yadav asked whether Friday's programme had been planned suddenly or fixed on the same day the SIT was constituted.
He wrote, "Why did today's speech contain more threats than statements? Was today's programme planned suddenly, or was it decided on the very day the SIT was constituted?"
He also asked why, according to sources, local BJP MLAs and office-bearers had pushed for the event at short notice to protect the party's political position, adding that otherwise "not just the Ayodhya division but the BJP's rout across the whole of Uttar Pradesh is considered certain".
Yadav said, "No attempt should be made to influence the work of the SIT through physical visits and inspections." He alleged that the SIT was already under suspicion because of its "controversial members" and "tainted image".
He also asked, "Why did the face appear downcast today? Why was there a deliberate effort to raise the pitch of the voice, yet no sign of self-confidence? Why did he not meet his close associates this time?" Yadav further said it was not enough to separate "milk from water" and that there must be a full accounting of "gold and silver".
He added that apart from donated money and priceless stones, there should also be an account of the valuable metals and jewellery offered at the temple. Earlier in the day, he had also called for another SIT to probe "someone's record-breaking" visits to Ayodhya in an apparent jibe at Adityanath.
Responding to the row, Adityanath said in Ayodhya that if the Ram Temple could be built after a wait of 500 years, people could wait 15 more days for the SIT investigation to establish the truth.
He said attempts were being made to defame Ayodhya, the temple and the trust, and urged people not to become part of such "conspiracies". "At the trust's request, we have ordered an SIT investigation and I can assure you that this probe will bring the absolute truth to light. There is no doubt about that," he said.
The Uttar Pradesh government on June 13 set up a three-member SIT after a request from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra to investigate allegations of misappropriation of donation funds at the temple.
The probe was ordered after Yadav, on June 7, cited reports alleging multi-crore wrongdoing in donation money at the Ram Temple and urged the courts to take cognisance of the matter.
The latest exchange between Yadav and Adityanath followed that order, with both sides focusing on the SIT probe and the allegations linked to temple donations.
