The controversy surrounding the alleged mismanagement of donations made to the Ram Temple in Ayodhya has intensified, with fresh allegations emerging over a missing silver brick donated by the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) faction.
The development comes amid claims that records of donations worth crores of rupees and valuable ornaments are missing.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Friday raised the issue through a post on X, alleging that a four-kilogram silver brick donated by the party for the construction of the Ram Temple has gone missing. He claimed that party chief Uddhav Thackeray had donated ₹1 crore along with the silver brick in the presence of thousands of Shiv Sainiks and saints during the temple construction campaign.
Raut questioned why the Ram Temple Trust has neither issued an official receipt nor provided any information regarding the donated silver brick even after several years. “Where has the silver brick gone? It is time for a thorough investigation to fix accountability,” he said.
Meanwhile, similar allegations have also been made by the Sindhi community. Raju Makwani of the Vishva Sindhi Seva Sangam claimed that the community had donated 200 silver bricks, each weighing one kilogram, to the Ram Temple in 2021. According to him, the bricks were handed over to Ram Temple trustee Champat Rai, but no official acknowledgement or receipt has been issued so far.
In connection with the alleged Ram Temple donation scam, police have arrested eight individuals identified as Ramashankar Yadav alias Tinnu, Anukalp Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Manish Yadav, Ramashankar Mishra, Subhash, Karunesh and Lavkush Mishra.
The accused have been booked under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on charges of theft, criminal conspiracy and cheating.
The investigation into the alleged irregularities is currently underway.
