Ayodhya, June 27: A high-level Special Investigation Team has uncovered severe procedural lapses in the donation management system at Ayodhya’s Ram temple, leading to the arrest of eight individuals. The preliminary report, submitted to the state administration just six days into the probe, indicates that established safety protocols were widely ignored. Investigators revealed that the laxity allowed for the alleged misappropriation of funds, prompting plans for an extensive overhaul of the temple’s administrative setup.
The investigation has generated significant attention across national administrative and political circles. Security sources confirmed that standard guidelines, which were jointly established by temple trust officials and State Bank of India representatives to secure the massive influx of offerings, were consistently bypassed. Among the chief violations was the unauthorized possession of donation box keys by a former driver linked to a senior trust official, which facilitated the cash discrepancies.
A detailed review of the operational failures showed that mandatory rules—including pocketless dress codes for counting staff, regular personnel frisking, and the deployment of specialized security guards—were not enforced. Furthermore, digital surveillance protocols were compromised, as closed-circuit television footage of the counting area was preserved for only forty-five days instead of the mandated one hundred and eighty days.
Law enforcement agencies acted swiftly following the formal report, recovering nearly Rs 80 lakh in cash alongside various foreign currencies from the suspects. The eight detained individuals, including the donation counting supervisor, have been remanded to judicial custody as the comprehensive financial audit continues.
“Many ‘hundis’ were there. So cash received in those hundis whose keys were with Tinnu was swindled, apparently due to laxity in implementing the SOPs. The exact modus operandi is still being established,” maintained an official source close to the investigation.
