LUCKNOW: As the Ram temple trust prepares for its emergency meeting on Monday to discuss the alleged theft of donations and decide the future of trust general secretary Champat Rai and member Anil Mishra, investigators say the probe has uncovered signs of what they believe was an organised insider operation.The Special Investigation Team (SIT), whose report is yet to be made public, is examining evidence that suggests the alleged embezzlement involved eight accused, with donation counter employee Avinash Shukla emerging as the central figure, according to investigators.The Uttar Pradesh government has extended the SIT’s deadline until July 15.Warnings allegedly ignoredAccording to investigators, concerns over irregularities in the counting of donations had surfaced months before the case became public.Some members of the temple trust reportedly detected anomalies in the counting process around three months before the allegations surfaced and recommended changes in personnel involved in the exercise. Investigators are examining whether those recommendations were implemented and, if not, why.By the end of May, when what investigators describe as “proof” had reportedly emerged, some trust members allegedly sought assistance from local police to “raid” suspects and recover cash. However, no First Information Report (FIR) was registered at the time.According to investigators, those involved believed that filing an FIR was unnecessary if recoveries had already been made, as it would bring the temple into “disrepute”.Cash deposits under scrutinyThe SIT has also questioned bank officials responsible for handling the trust’s deposits.According to investigators, bank officials told the SIT that before the alleged theft came to light, daily deposits into the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust’s bank accounts averaged between Rs 16 lakh and Rs 18 lakh.After the case surfaced, the daily deposits reportedly increased to between Rs 24 lakh and Rs 26 lakh.Based on those figures, investigators estimate that between Rs 6 lakh and Rs 8 lakh may have been siphoned off each day. These estimates remain part of the ongoing investigation.CCTV footage examinedInvestigators are analysing CCTV footage that they say shows five of the eight accused behaving suspiciously during the counting process.According to the probe, the footage allegedly shows some accused concealing cash in their pockets and socks before temporarily hiding it in temple bathrooms and later taking it out in small amounts.Investigators also allege that some accused attempted to mask CCTV coverage.Officials involved in the probe say the standard operating procedure required counting staff to wear clothing without pockets, but they allege that this rule was not followed.Theft peaked during Maha KumbhInvestigators believe the alleged theft peaked during the 2025 Maha Kumbh, when the temple witnessed an unprecedented rise in visitors and donations.According to sources involved in the investigation, the temple usually receives between 80,000 and one lakh visitors a day. During the 45-day Maha Kumbh period, from 13 January to 26 February 2025, footfall reportedly reached between 10 lakh and 12 lakh on peak days.The surge prompted the bank handling the trust’s cash deposits to formally request additional manpower, saying existing staff and counting machines were insufficient.The trust subsequently asked the bank to recruit more counting personnel. Around 40 to 45 counting staff were hired through a Varanasi-based agency. Investigators are examining the recruitment process after learning that many of those appointed were allegedly recommended by a small group of trust members.The SIT is also looking into the handling of gold, silver and jewellery donated at the temple.Investigators say there was no systematic bookkeeping or tracking mechanism for precious metal donations, making them vulnerable to theft.According to the investigation, the trust had earlier sent 9.44 quintals (944kg) of silver to the government-run mint for testing and melting as part of an exercise to assess the quantity and quality of precious metal donations.The SIT has sought records relating to ornaments and other valuable donations, as well as documents concerning transactions with the Printing and Minting Corporation of India.Recoveries made so farAccording to investigators, cash allegedly linked to the case has been recovered from several of the accused.The reported recoveries include Rs 18.07 lakh from Karunesh Pandey, Rs 16.82 lakh from Anukalp Mishra, Rs 14.25 lakh from Lavkush Mishra, Rs 7.32 lakh and silver items from Ramashankar Mishra, Rs 2 lakh from Manish Kumar Yadav, and Rs 1 lakh from Ramashankar Yadav, also known as Tinnu.Investigators said no recovery was made from the eighth accused, Subhash Srivastava.The SIT’s findings are expected to be placed before the trust after its report is finalised. Until then, the allegations and conclusions emerging from the investigation remain subject to further examination.
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