New Delhi [India], August 11 : Congress MP KC Venugopal has submitted an adjournment motion notice in the Lok Sabha seeking an urgent discussion on what he described as "shocking revelations" of massive financial fraud, theft and embezzlement of public donations at the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
In the notice submitted to the Lok Sabha Secretariat on Tuesday, Venugopal alleged that a highly organised racket was operating within the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, with bundles of cash and valuable jewellery donated by devotees allegedly being systematically siphoned off.
Venugopal said the matter was of "urgent importance" and warranted the suspension of regular business of the House for a discussion. He alleged that the donations were made by millions of devotees and constituted the hard-earned life savings of people across the country.
The Congress leader also raised questions over the alleged destruction of crucial CCTV footage. According to his notice, seven to eight months of CCTV footage was deliberately destroyed to cover up the alleged crimes.
He further alleged that the former Chief Accounts Officer of the trust, who had reportedly flagged irregularities as early as 2020-21, was subsequently removed. Venugopal termed the alleged removal of the officer, along with the destruction of CCTV records, as indications of a deeper institutional conspiracy.
The Congress MP also questioned the investigation being carried out by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the state government on June 13 and the FIR registered on June 25.
Opposition has been demanding accountability from the government over the alleged theft of donations from the Ram Mandir.
Earlier, Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Akhilesh Yadav on Monday launched a scathing attack on the Centre over ongoing parliamentary deadlocks, demanding answers on the alleged donation embezzlement at Ayodhya's Ram Temple.
"The BJP is essentially a massive 'land mafia' party. If they spot a pond or a vacant plot of land... and look at the way faith was toyed with on the sacred soil of Ayodhya, land prices skyrocketed within mere minutes," the SP leader asserted.
The Opposition has made it clear that they will not end the logjam in Parliament till Union Home Minister Amit Shah comes to Parliament and gives a reply on police action on student protestors and the Ram Mandir donation case.