Ayodhya: A local court on Tuesday sent all those accused in the alleged Ram Mandir donation theft to 14 days of judicial custody, after Uttar Pradesh Police conducted intensive questioning into claims of financial irregularities and misappropriation of offerings at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi temple.
With the court’s permission, investigators questioned the detained suspects inside jail for roughly two hours, officials said. Avinash Mishra faced the longest period of questioning among the accused, according to police sources.
Modus Operandi
During interrogation, the suspects confessed to diverting crores from temple donations by exploiting access to counting-room keys and weak surveillance, the police said. The scheme reportedly involved collusion between Tinnu Yadav — described by investigators as a close aide of Champat Rai and a holder of one counting-room key — and bank personnel who possessed the other key. One member would remove the cash while others formed a human shield to obstruct CCTV coverage, then temporarily stowed the money in a bathroom before moving it out of the premises, as reported by DNA.
The accused told police that control room staff nominally monitored camera feeds but did not perform effective surveillance, a lapse they admitted knowing about and exploiting. Trustee Anil Mishra’s involvement in overseeing donation counting also surfaced during questioning.
Investigators added that some of the allegedly misappropriated funds were later invested in land and real estate. “No one expected the entire scheme to be exposed so quickly,” a source said.
Arrests & Probe Status
Police registered an FIR last Thursday and subsequently arrested in-charge Subhash Srivastava, Tinnu Yadav, and counting-room employees Anukalp Mishra, Lavkush Mishra, Manish Yadav, Ramashankar Mishra, Karunesh, and Avnish Shukla. After securing court approval, officers revisited the jail on Tuesday to continue interrogations.
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) handling the case has been granted an additional 15 days to expand its probe and pursue all leads, ANI reported. Authorities said the extension will allow a more exhaustive inquiry to ensure those responsible are identified and prosecuted.
