The investigation into the alleged misuse of donation money at Ayodhya's Ram temple has cleared its first hurdle, but it is far from over. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the case handed over its preliminary report to the state government on Tuesday. The report was submitted to Uttar Pradesh's Additional Chief Secretary (Home), Sanjay Prasad. It has been made clear that this is only an initial account and that the real digging will carry on.
Vijay Vishwas Pant, the Lucknow Divisional Commissioner who heads the SIT, said the document handed over so far is just a preliminary report. According to him, whatever facts the team gathered during its visit and whatever findings emerged have been placed before the government exactly as they are.
Final report expected in 15 days
Pant made it clear that the work is not finished. He said the inquiry will continue and the final report will be submitted to the government within 15 days. He added that if any new facts surface in the meantime, the team will not hesitate to ask the government for more time.
Report kept confidential
When asked what the report contains, Pant declined to share the details. He said it is a confidential investigation report and the team is not authorised to disclose its contents at this stage. Responding to questions about the alleged embezzlement, he repeated that the full account of the inquiry has been made available to the government. He noted that this report by the three-member SIT, set up by the administration, was handed to the Additional Chief Secretary (Home) in that very sequence.
Team formed on June 13
The Uttar Pradesh government set up the three-member Special Investigation Team on June 13 to look into allegations linked to the financial management of the Ram temple trust and its donation money. The step was taken on the directions of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, following a request from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. The team was tasked with examining the allegations being raised over the donation boxes at the pilgrimage site and submitting its report to the government.
