(Photo) Curtesy : The Week
NEW DELHI: The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Trust’s meeting was held in Ayodhya on Monday to deliberate on the resignations submitted by its members Champat Rai and Anil Mishra. Trust chief Champat Rai was not in attendance.
The meeting also assumes significance because it comes amid the ongoing investigation into alleged embezzlement or theft of donations made to the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
In a significant development ahead of the meeting, President of Ram Temple trust Nritya Gopal Das issued his first statement on the donation controversy. “I am deeply saddened by the alleged theft of devotees’ offerings at the temple of Shri Ramlalla Sarkar. Whoever has committed this sinful act should be awarded the strictest punishment,” Das said.
So far, eight arrests have been made in the case and the temple trust’s former general secretary Champat Rai has also appeared before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) as part of the probe.
Das said: “I have complete faith in Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Narendra Modi that every person involved in this wrongdoing, in any manner whatsoever, will be brought to justice and punished in accordance with the law.”
Varanasi firm’s role in focus: Amid the ongoing probe, HT recently found that six of the eight men arrested in connection with the irregularities were employed by a Varanasi-based security agency. The agency was hired by the State Bank of India (SBI), Naya Ghat Branch, Ayodhya for the cash-counting process, said Gaurav Singh, the owner and director of Sainik Security Services, Varanasi.
Amid the controversy over the theft of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust Treasurer Govind Dev Giri broke his silence on the ongoing issue and released a detailed two-page statement, saying he had no role in the counting of offerings and calling for a thorough and impartial investigation into the matter.
He lives in Pune and said he visits Ayodhya approximately every one to one-and-a-half months for trust-related work and has never claimed any reimbursement from the trust for his air travel or other travel expenses. He described his work as selfless service to Lord Ram.
Calling the alleged embezzlement of temple donations an “unbelievable” incident, Giri said it had deeply hurt the sentiments of Lord Ram’s devotees. He also noted that reports suggest the alleged theft of offerings had been going on for a considerable period, describing it as extremely painful for devotees.
In his statement addressed to Ram devotees, Giri clarified that he never sought or lobbied for the post of trustee or treasurer of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. He said serving Lord Ram in any capacity is a matter of privilege and fulfilment, adding that he prays for everyone’s well-being.
Giri said that, as treasurer, audited records of all income and expenditure from the beginning have been safely maintained and remain available for inspection by authorised persons at any time.
He explained that maintaining accounts is part of his responsibilities, but because he travels frequently, chartered accountant associates from the trust’s Pune office visit Ayodhya during the last four to five days of every month to examine the accounts, assist the trust’s office staff and provide necessary guidance.
Clarifying his financial role, Giri said all trust expenditures are made directly through banks. He said he is not an authorised signatory for bank transactions, does not possess a cheque book and that no payments are made in cash, with all payments processed only through bank transfers.
Addressing the controversy over donation counting, Giri stated that he has never had any connection with the area where offerings deposited in the temple’s hundi are counted. He said he resides in Pune and remains engaged in continuous travel for religious discourses, while the counting of donations is a daily operational activity handled by local trustees from the beginning. He added that the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for counting donations was jointly prepared by the local trustees and the State Bank of India, and that he was shown the SOP for the first time only last month.
