Congress general secretary K C Venugopal wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding an immediate Supreme Court-monitored investigation into the alleged Ram Temple donation scam.
Venugopal termed the alleged embezzlement of hundreds of crores of rupees as the "Chanda Chori mega scandal" and a betrayal of Hindu faith.
The Congress leader alleged that crucial CCTV footage of seven to eight months was deliberately destroyed to cover up the systematic theft of cash and jewellery.
Venugopal Seeks SC Probe Into Ram Temple Fund Embezzlement
KC Venugopal, who heads the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament, described the allegations as the "Chanda Chori mega scandal" and a "monumental betrayal" of the Hindu faith
Summary
Congress general secretary K C Venugopal has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding an immediate Supreme Court-monitored probe into the alleged embezzlement of Ram Temple donations.
Venugopal, who heads the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament, described the allegations as the "Chanda Chori mega scandal" and a "monumental betrayal" of the Hindu faith. He said the fraud involves hundreds of crores of rupees.
"Lord Ram is revered as the embodiment of justice and righteousness. Allowing allegations of this nature to be buried, rather than impartially investigated, would be a profound injustice to his devotees and to the values he embodies," Venugopal said.
Sharing the letter on X, he wrote that the scandal "strikes at the heart of how faith is corrupted -- first for political gain, and then for financial enrichment."
Systemic Lapses and Coverup
"On one hand, the counting staff bypassed regular surveillance to siphon off bundles of cash and valuable jewellery on a daily basis; on the other, 7 to 8 months of crucial CCTV footage was deliberately destroyed to cover the tracks of this criminal enterprise," Venugopal said.
The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is a public trust constituted by the Union government in 2020 following a Supreme Court judgment. The former Chief Accounts Officer of the Trust had flagged systematic irregularities and warned that unaccounted gold and silver ornaments were being spirited away in 2020-21. However, the Trust unceremoniously removed him from his duties instead of hearing his concerns, Moneycontrol reported.
SIT Investigation Labeled Eyewash
The Uttar Pradesh government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) on June 13, followed by a First Information Report (FIR) registered on June 25. Police have arrested eight accused, including drivers, clerks and outsourced cashiers. Police recovered nearly ₹80 lakh in cash and foreign currency from six of them.
Venugopal criticised the state-level probe as an "eyewash" that targets "small fish" while leaving the institutional support and "big fish" untouched.
"A state-appointed SIT is neither equipped nor institutionally independent to investigate individuals wielding immense political and institutional influence," Venugopal said.
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He said there is a growing apprehension that the investigation is being used to erase the remaining evidence while shielding the "big fish" who allegedly orchestrated the multi-crore embezzlement.
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