Congress has made clear that the first issue it will raise when Parliament's Monsoon Session opens will be the controversy over donations collected for the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party of betraying the trust devotees placed in the temple project.
Jairam Ramesh's direct attack
Speaking after an all-party meeting called ahead of the Monsoon Session, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said the Ram Mandir Trust had betrayed the faith of devotees. He used the slogan "Pradhan Mantri Chuppi Todo" (Hindi for "Mr Prime Minister, break your silence") to press the government, arguing the row will not settle down until Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks on the matter himself.
Roots of the donation controversy
The row has been building for weeks. Congress alleges that donations devotees gave for the construction of the Ram Mandir were misused, with people linked to the BJP accused of siphoning off the money. Akhilesh Yadav also targeted the BJP, saying, "BJP betrayed public faith, Lord Ram will not forgive them." He further said the BJP would get neither donations nor votes after the row, and that he would visit the Ram Temple only after completing construction of the Kedareshwar Dham. In response, the BJP's Uttar Pradesh state chief said whoever is found guilty in the probe will not escape action. Separately, the Congress unit in Himachal Pradesh announced it will launch a two-month campaign over the alleged embezzlement of Ram Mandir donations.
The Ram Mandir Trust's response
Amid the allegations, Ram Mandir Trust member Dinendra Das Maharaj offered a rebuttal, saying, "Rituals performed on time, no shortage in number of devotees."
What else happened at the all-party meeting
The entire episode played out at an all-party meeting convened ahead of the Monsoon Session. Speaking for the government, Kiren Rijiju said ahead of the meeting that it was ready to hear the Opposition but expected the same in return. At the same meeting, Opposition parties walked out over the government's invite to the NCPI, calling it a violation of democratic norms. Jairam Ramesh described the NCPI as a parking place for around 20 so-called rebel Trinamool Congress MPs. Shrikant Shinde said at the meeting that the Speaker would address the technical aspects of merging 6 UBT MPs into the Shiv Sena.
