THE probe into the alleged theft of Ram temple donations has found that part of the misappropriated money was allegedly invested in the share market and lent out on interest, while several transactions were routed through the bank accounts of relatives and close associates, police sources said on Thursday. As part of the investigation, police took accused Anukalp Mishra to his residence on Thursday morning and conducted a search for around 20 minutes. His family members were also questioned. On Wednesday, police had similarly taken co-accused Lavkush Mishra and Karunesh Pandey to their respective houses, where searches were also carried out. Police have frozen 30 bank accounts belonging to relatives of these three accused. Preliminary investigation has found that these accounts recorded transactions disproportionate to the account holders’ known sources of income, the sources said. Searches conducted at the residences of the three accused led to the recovery of bundles of cash, gold jewellery, including earrings and lockets, and a car. However, police have not disclosed the amount of cash recovered or specified from whose residence the seized items were found. During interrogation, Anukalp Mishra and co-accused Avinash allegedly admitted that the stolen donation money was invested in the share market and also lent out on interest, the sources said. They allegedly distributed money among close associates and relatives and later had the funds transferred back into their own bank accounts to conceal the transactions. Following Anukalp Mishra’s questioning, police raided his house in Ayodhya, where they recovered documents related to the purchase of one acre of land in his name. The land was purchased for around Rs 6.7 lakh.

 

However, its current market value is believed to be several times higher, police sources said. A major controversy erupted in the first week of June after alleged irregularities were detected in the counting of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya. The UP Government constituted an SIT following the recommendation of the trust. The SIT found prima facie evidence of embezzlement, following which an FIR was registered and eight people associated with the temple’s donation-counting were arrested. Champat Rai not upset after resigning: Giri: RAM Temple Trust Treasurer Govind Dev Giri on Thursday said Champat Rai is not upset after resigning as its General Secretary in the wake of the donation theft and is fully supportive of the new temple management system being put in place. “I met Champat Rai ji yesterday mainly to check on his health. He is healthy, solution-oriented and has no misgivings about his resignation,” Giri told reporters. Giri has been staying here since the July 6 meeting of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, where Rai’s resignation, along with that of other trustee Anil Mishra, was accepted. A day after the meeting, Rai said in a letter to “Ram devotees” that he would respond to allegations against him after the SIT probing the alleged embezzlement of donations submits its final report. Along with a letter, a purported statement submitted by him to the SIT also came to light, in which he questioned the role of the State Bank of India in the Ram temple’s donation-counting process. Giri, who has maintained that Rai remained “untainted” in his eyes but he trusted the “wrong people” for too long, allowing the embezzlement to go undetected, visited Rai following his letter. “He (Champat) is an old veteran who has devoted his life to the country.

 

He is fully supportive of the new (temple management) system being put in place and he isn’t upset or angry,” Giri told the media about his meeting with Rai on Wednesday, which apparently lasted a couple of hours. “I also met seers of Ayodhya who are in agreement and happy about the new temple management system being put in place,” he said. Giri said the trust is committed to implementing changes that improve the temple management system, and everyone agreed with this. Rai has been replaced by former IFS officer and trustee Krishna Mohan, who had lodged a police complaint against eight people, who have since been arrested, following the preliminary SIT report. The trust has also set up a three-member committee to identify a CEO. The panel comprises retired judge Pramod Kohli, retired Lt Gen Vishnukant Chaturvedi and trustee Suresh Haware. The trust will meet next on July 22 to discuss these and other measures as part of a plan to plug loopholes that led to the alleged donation theft.