Amidst the alleged embezzlement of funds at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, a Lucknow-based jeweller on Saturday claimed that he does not know the current status of a silver lamp weighing 3 kg, which he had offered as an anonymous donation to the temple.
Anurag Rastogi, who is the north India head of the India Bullion and Jewellers Association (IBJA), said he could also not find the whereabouts of the silver weighing 39.26 kg donated by the association ahead of the Bhoomipujan (held on August 5, 2020) in Ayodhya.
“On behalf of my family, I offered a three-kg silver lamp as an anonymous donation to the Ram temple. Apart from this, in the capacity of north India head of the IBJA, we gave 30 pieces of silver items weighing 34.64 kg and four silver bricks weighing 4.62 kg,” Rastogi said.
Rastogi said, “The first donation was that of a silver lamp weighing 3 kg. This was done when Yogi Adityanath carried the idol of Ram Lalla, and he was shifted to a temporary makeshift structure in March 2020.” “Later, as the north India head of the IBJA, I gave a proposal to my fellow office-bearers that each of us should donate 10 grams of silver so that their contribution could go directly into the foundation of the temple during its construction,” he said.
