Congress demands Supreme Court-monitored probe into alleged Ram Temple donation embezzlement case

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

The View From India Looking at World Affairs from the Indian perspective.

First Day First Show News and reviews from the world of cinema and streaming.

Today's Cache Your download of the top 5 technology stories of the day.

Data Point Decoding the headlines with facts, figures, and numbers

Health Matters Ramya Kannan writes to you on getting to good health, and staying there

The Hindu On Books Books of the week, reviews, excerpts, new titles and features.

Congress leader Rajeev Shukla said the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust should immediately be disbanded. File picture | Photo Credit: AP

The Congress on Friday (June 26, 2026) demanded a Supreme Court-monitored investigation into the allegations of the embezzlement of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

Also Read | Donation theft in Ayodhya and land grab in Mahakal, this is the new Modi model: Congress

Addressing a press conference, senior Congress leader Rajeev Shukla said the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust should immediately be disbanded, and management of the temple should be handed over to religious leaders like Mahant and Sankaracharya.

“What is this temple trust within a party? This is happening with meticulous planning. First, capture the trust of the big temples, appoint your own people, then take out the donations and use it for political purposes,” Mr. Shukla alleged.

“Exploiting Lord Ram for votes as well as for [currency] notes is unacceptable to us,” the Congress leader said.

Mr. Shukla said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should intervene since he had done the consecration of Lord Ram’s statue at Ayodhya.

The Congress leader asserted that with the Uttar Pradesh registering a first information report (FIR) in the embezzlement of the case after the special investigation team (SIT) report, it is clear that the UP government has acknowledged that there has been “a loot to the tune of thousands of crores”.

“This is a very serious matter which concerns the faith of millions of people,”Mr Shukla said, adding, “I would request the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court that an inquiry should be ordered under his supervision”.

He said women from South India often follow a tradition of offering their personal jewellery to Lord Ram. “Can you imagine that there was no record of such jewellery donation. Where are our principles? Poor people saved donated ₹50 or ₹100, and even that money was siphoned off,” the Congress leader added.

Mr Shukla said the F