New Delhi: The special investigation team probing the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya has identified 105 instances of unauthorised removal or concealment of currency from the temple’s counting room, the Supreme Court has noted in its order.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana perused the report of the court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) which, however, found no discrepancies in the handling of “200 kg of silver bricks, 38.288 kg of silver bricks, a silver necklace, Charan Paduka, and a donation related to the Ramcharitmanas”.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the bench on Monday that the SIT will file its first chargesheet on or before September 25. The SIT, headed by Uttar Pradesh Inspector General of Police Kiran S, said it had verified allegations that appeared in the media and on social media concerning the valuable donations.
The SIT report pointed out that CCTV footage from the counting room at the temple’s Pilgrim Facility Centre (PFC) and other digital data “revealed 105 instances of unauthorised currency removal or concealment from the counting room, involving assistance from other individuals participating in the counting process”.
The report said eight accused have been identified and gave a “tabulated summary of the unexplained deposits in their accounts and information about the immovable and movable assets where the stolen money was invested.”
The bench said in its order, “The status report further emphasises the estimated amount misappropriated by each accused individual, also noting that existing evidence suggests the suspected misappropriation of currency took place within the counting room during the process of counting and handling the currency.”
“The investigation has proceeded simultaneously on multiple aspects, including identification of the suspected acts of misappropriation, identification and examination of the persons involved, tracing of the suspected proceeds thereof, financial and property investigation, examination of electronic evidence, verification of valuable articles and reconciliation of the relevant donation and banking records,” it said.
The SIT report dated September 16 said relevant records and materials related to valuable articles had been examined, and no discrepancies were found in the verification.
It said 803 articles were kept in a State Bank of India locker, which were physically inspected, and no discrepancies were found in respect of them.
“The report discloses that the receipts generated by the TCS software for 803 valuable articles have been verified, and their relevant records have been found to be with the Trust. These articles are stored in a State Bank of India locker, which was physically checked. In so far as these 803 articles are concerned, no discrepancies were found during the verification,” the order said.
The report said another 86 valuable articles for which receipts had not been issued were separately identified and physically verified.
The SIT also examined records concerning approximately 944.411 kg of silver, which had been sent by the Trust to the Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Ltd for melting.
It said statements of 173 witnesses had been recorded as of September 14.
Those examined included Trust functionaries, accounting personnel, bank officials, security personnel and chartered accountants.
Earlier, it had also issued a notice to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust on pleas seeking a fair and time-bound probe into the alleged donation theft.
After allegations of irregularities in the management of donations surfaced at the Ram temple, several petitioners, including RJD MP Sudhakar Singh, moved the apex court seeking a probe by the CBI and a forensic audit of the finances of the temple trust.
