Latest findings into the Ram Mandir theft case revealed that the accused not only siphoned off the temple’s donations but also used fake receipts to dupe devotees. The latest finding adds a shocking twist to the Ram Mandir donation theft case. According to media reports, the SIT team investigating the case has recovered old fake donation receipt books that bear the name and logo of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra.

The development emerged during the questioning of the accused. So far, a total of eight people have been detained, including Ramshankar Yadav aka Tinnu Yadav, a close associate of former trust general secretary Champat Rai. Rai had resigned from his post last week amid the controversy linked to Ram Temple.

Accused reveals fake donation receipts used to dupe devotees

During interrogation, the accused allegedly confessed to duping devotees by collecting money using forged donation receipts. Reports added that the recovered slip books resembled the original receipts very closely. The forged receipts also carried the temple trust’s logo, making them look authentic and making devotees less likely to detect the fraud.

How did it happen?

According to preliminary investigations, the accused used the forged slips to acknowledge the donations. The SIT is, however, yet to find out how much money was siphoned off using such fake receipts. It has come to light that the accused stopped using the paper receipts after the Ram Temple management rolled out a new online receipt system.

Devotees then began transferring the donations directly to the Ram Mandir bank account or obtaining official receipts from the authorised donation counter within the temple premises. Meanwhile, the SIT probe also revealed that the six staff members involved in the donation-counting process siphoned off Rs 2 to 3 crore over time. The accused exploited gaps in CCTV surveillance and weak enforcement of security protocols, reports added.