Chandigarh: Former Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust General Secretary Champat Rai has said he will respond to all allegations of embezzlement of donations made to the Ram Mandir only after the Special Investigation Team (SIT) submits its final report.<\/p>\n
In a handwritten letter addressed to “Ram devotees”, Rai described the allegations against him as baseless and said he had maintained silence on the issue until now.<\/p>\n
He noted that the SIT’s preliminary report had already been presented before the Trust’s general meeting. According to Rai, the report was initially marked “Top Secret” but was later made public.<\/p>\n
Rai said he would give a point-by-point response after the SIT completes its investigation and submits its final report.<\/p>\n
“The complete truth will come before the public once the SIT submits its final report,” he said.<\/p>\n
The alleged donation embezzlement case came to light on June 7. Based on the preliminary findings of the SIT constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government, an FIR was registered on June 25. So far, eight people associated with the temple’s donation counting process have been arrested, while the investigation is continuing.<\/p>\n
Highlighting his background, Rai said he had been working in Ayodhya since October 1991 after being deputed by the organisation and that his 45-year life as a full-time pracharak had always been an open book.<\/p>\n
Earlier this week, the Ram Mandir Trust appointed Krishna Mohan as its interim General Secretary and announced steps to strengthen the donation management system and restore devotees’ confidence.<\/p>\n
Trust Treasurer Govind Giri described the alleged theft from the temple’s donation boxes as a matter of “deep pain and embarrassment” for the Trust. However, he said the Trust had unanimously appreciated Champat Rai’s contribution to the Ram Mandir movement and the temple’s construction despite accepting his resignation.<\/p>\n
Defending Rai, Giri said he considered him “beyond reproach” and suggested that his only mistake may have been placing trust in the wrong people.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Chandigarh: Former Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust General Secretary Champat Rai has said he will respond to all allegations of embezzlement of donations made to the Ram Mandir only after the Special Investigation Team (SIT) submits its final report. In a handwritten letter addressed to “Ram devotees”, Rai described the allegations against him as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":68010,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,19,37],"tags":[16657,16654,16656,16655],"class_list":["post-68009","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-crime","category-latest","category-national","tag-after-sit-submits-final-report","tag-former-ram-mandir","tag-rai-says-he-will-respond","tag-trust-chief-champat"],"yoast_head":"\n