PIL In Allahabad High Court Seeks CBI Probe Into Alleged Embezzlement Of Ayodhya Ram Mandir Donation Funds

The petition, filed by a practicing Advocate Mohit Ashok, further seeks a comprehensive “special forensic audit” of the accounts of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG).

Relying on a news report published by the national daily Dainik Jagran (on June 8), the PIL plea states that money deposited by devotees into the donation boxes (daan-patra) at the Temple has been embezzled by certain employees of the Trust.

The petition points out that even though 4 suspect employees were taken into police custody and approximately ₹5 lakh was reportedly recovered from a bank account linked to a Trust employee, the respondent authorities are engaged in "institutional denial" rather than taking remedial action.

Specifically, the PIL plea notes that the Trust's spokesperson, Shri Gopal Rao, publicly dismissed the media reports as "mere rumours", while Security Officer Shri Balramachari Dubey similarly denied the incidents. The plea states thus:

"This posture of institutional denial, in the face of custodial interrogation and judicial-process recovery, raises grave apprehensions about the Trust's capacity and willingness to ensure an impartial and effective internal inquiry."

The PIL plea adds that the gravity of the matter intensified after Shri Mahipal Singh, the former Head of Accounts (Lekha Prabhari) of the Trust who served from January 2021 to March/April 2022, made explosive insider disclosures.

The significant issues allegedly revealed by Singh, as highlighted by the petitioner, are:

• During the cash-counting process at the Temple, personnel responsible for counting the currency notes and preparing bundles would, systematically and deliberately, count a sum of Rs. 12 lakh but record the voucher figure as only Rs. 9–10 lakh thus siphoning off the difference in cash, with the help of bank officials.
• On discovering that a cash box contained Rs. 5 lakh in excess of the voucher amount, Singh reported this discrepancy to Shri Champat Rai (General Secretary) and Shri Gopal Rao. Instead of initiating any investigation or disciplinary action, he was summarily removed from the accounts process and replaced.
• Before his replacement, 7-8 months of CCTV footage was deleted, thereby destroying the primary electronic evidence of the alleged embezzlement.
• Ten separate chest-boxes in which devotees deposited gold and silver items were taken away by one 'Tinnu' without any accounting entries, receipts, or records. A mere photograph was sent to the General Secretary, and Gopal Rao told Singh that this was entirely the General Secretary's domain and that no entry was required. 
  
• When Singh raised objections to the voucher-signing process, the cash-counting methodology, and the absence of his own signature on vouchers, Gopal Rao explicitly told him that his role was merely 'to sit' and not to question the process.

The petitioner further argues that the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is a public trust in the truest constitutional and legal sense, managing property and resources held on behalf of the nation and the community of devotees.

In this regard, the PIL plea refers to the judgment of the Supreme Court in the Ayodhya Title dispute case (M. Siddiq (D) Thr. Lrs. v. Mahant Suresh Das & Ors. (2019)) and a Gazette Notification issued by the Government of India.

The petitioner also apprises the Court that he previously addressed a formal Representation to the Principal Secretary, Vigilance, Government of Uttar Pradesh, with copies to various authorities, including the Director General of Police (UP), the CAG, and the Ministry of Home Affairs, demanding a CBI investigation.

However, no substantive independent investigation has been initiated as of the date of filing of this petition. The petitioner concludes that the complete non-response by all Respondent authorities in a matter of such gravity renders the present petition not only maintainable but also urgently necessary.