The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust will hold a crucial meeting on Monday amid ongoing investigations into the alleged embezzlement of donations, with the fate of the resignations submitted by Trust’s general secretary Champat Rai and trustee Anil Mishra expected to dominate the agenda, sources said.
The meeting will be held at Mani Ram Chhawni, the monastery of Trust president Nritya Gopal Das. Treasurer Govind Dev Giri has asked all regular and ex officio members to attend the deliberations. A preliminary SIT report on the alleged donation theft and a discussion on the creation of the post of chief executive officer (CEO) were part of the agenda of the Trust meeting, the sources said.
Trust president Nritya Gopal Das, who was hospitalised, and senior trustee K Parasaran, who could not travel due to age-related health issues, might participate via video conference.
The Trust was likely to discuss the resignations of Champat Rai and Anil Mishra, both of whom stepped down after being accused in the case, they said.
Meanwhile, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) president Alok Kumar, in a letter to the investigating officer in the case, has demanded a probe into the allegations made by several Opposition leaders.
The letter, addressed to Ayodhya DSP Ashutosh Tiwari, contains statements made by Samajwadi Party national general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi and AAP MP Sanjay Singh. The letter states that the Opposition leaders have alleged that the embezzlement involves an amount exceeding Rs 20,000 crore.
“In order to ensure a fair, comprehensive and impartial investigation, it would be appropriate to require the attendance of the aforesaid persons under the applicable provisions of law, or otherwise record their statements, so that they may disclose the factual basis of the allegations made by them, the source of their information, and all documents or other material in their possession supporting such allegations,” Kumar said in the letter.
He, however, added that if, upon investigation, it was found that the leaders had made the allegations without any factual basis or supporting material, the investigating agency might consider taking such action as may be permissible under the law. “Nobody can be permitted to make wild allegations that tend to create and promote feelings of hatred, ill will and enmity and get away with it,” he said.
AAP MP Sanjay Singh had also alleged the theft of more than Rs 200 crore and accused more than 50 employees of being involved.
Priyanka Gandhi had said that money was collected not only from big corporate houses but also from the poor during the nationwide fundraising drive for the temple. “People, especially women and the poor, have given (donations) from their savings. If you collected it, it’s your responsibility to keep it safe,” she had said on June 28 in Wayanad.
