Homes, SUVs: Life of Ram temple theft accused modified dramatically; Rs 6-8 lakh siphoned off each day, reveals probe | Lucknow Information

LUCKNOW: A major rise within the monetary standing of most of these accused of siphoning off donations to the Ram Temple in Ayodhya has come to mild through the investigation.They have constructed respectable homes and had been discovered utilizing SUVs although their month-to-month revenue from identified sources was between Rs 14,000 and Rs 15,000, in keeping with officers near the investigation.While the Special Investigation Team (SIT) report is but to be made public, TOI has learnt key particulars of its findings and proposals.Also learn: From ignored warnings to Rs 6-8 lakh each day theft, 10 issues we all know thus farAvinash Shukla bought consuming water close to Hanuman Gufa in Ayodhya earlier than securing a job on the temple’s donation counting centre. He hails from Pratapgarh and has gone on to construct a home in Ayodhya.On Saturday night time, a Maruti Brezza belonging to Shukla was seized by Ayodhya police.Another accused, Lavkush Mishra, bought a 1,000-sq-ft plot on Oct 16 final yr in Banipur locality, in Ayodhya’s Sohawal space. The sale deed reportedly displays a registered worth of Rs 8.8 lakh.However, residents claimed that plots of comparable dimension within the space usually command a market worth of round Rs 24 lakh to Rs 25 lakh, elevating questions on valuation and supply of funds.Lavkush’s spouse acquired a discover from the Ayodhya Development Authority to point out the papers for the land.‘Donation chori’ was flagged by many however these warnings landed on deaf ears‘Proof’ Surfaced By End Of May, But No FIR Was Lodged As ‘It Would Bring Temple Into Disrepute’Similarly, Ramshankar Yadav, alias Tinnu, constructed a hostel. He was initially a driver. The embezzlement was flagged by a number of folks even earlier than a Samajwadi Party politician went public, however these warnings had been ignored and issues spun uncontrolled. Some temple belief members reportedly detected irregularities within the counting course of round three months earlier than the case surfaced.Changes in personnel concerned had been additionally really useful. Investigators are actually inspecting whether or not these suggestions had been acted upon, and if not, why.By the tip of May, when proof reportedly surfaced, a few of them took assist from native police in “raiding” the suspects and recovering the booty. But no FIR was lodged. They believed an FIR was not required if recoveries had been effected as it will deliver the temple into “disrepute”.According to the officers, financial institution officers questioned by the SIT have given an estimate of the quantity allegedly stolen each day. According to them, earlier than the theft got here to mild, deposits to Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust’s financial institution accounts averaged Rs 16 to Rs 18 lakh per day.After the case surfaced, nonetheless, the quantity rose to Rs 24 to Rs 26 lakh per day. Based on these financial institution figures, investigators estimate that Rs 6 to Rs 8 lakh was being siphoned off each day.Five of the eight accused have been seen in CCTV footage; a few of them had been masking CCTV protection. Investigators are additionally analysing CCTV footage that allegedly exhibits 5 of the eight accused dealing with money suspiciously through the counting course of. They hid money in pockets and socks and hid this briefly within the temple loos earlier than smuggling it out in small tranches. The SOP mandated clothes with out pockets for counting employees however this was clearly ignored.The Maha Kumbh interval recorded a spike in footfall on the Ram temple, and a surge in donations. That was the time when the utmost theft is suspected to have taken place, officers stated on the idea of questioning of the accused.Sources stated that on any given day, the typical footfall on the temple is between 80,000 and 1 lakh. During the 45-day Maha Kumbh window in 2025, between Jan 13 and Feb 26, it rose to 10 to 12 lakh on peak days.It was then that the financial institution despatched a proper letter to the belief requesting extra manpower to depend the elevated quantity of money. The belief then requested the financial institution to rent extra folks as the prevailing employees and counting machines had been insufficient to deal with the surge.The financial institution then employed practically 40-45 counting employees by a Varanasi-based company. Many of those appointees had been really useful by a handful of belief members.There was no systematic bookkeeping or monitoring of gold, silver, and jewelry donations, making them extremely straightforward targets. The belief had, within the first part, despatched 9.44 quintals (944 kg) of silver to the govt-run mint for testing and melting as a part of a course of to evaluate the standard and amount of valuable metals acquired from devotees.The probe staff has sought information associated to ornaments and different valuable donations, together with particulars of transactions carried out with the Printing and Minting Corp of India.