Former Ram Temple Trust general secretary and VHP leader Champat Rai, who recently resigned from his post over alleged irregularities in donations to the Ram temple in Ayodhya, has questioned the State Bank of India.
In his one-page letter written in Hindi before the Special Investigation Team (SIT), seen by HT, Rai alleged that rules framed by the bank were violated but were never reported. He said all banks in the country have strict chest room protocols – including entry and exit inspections and uniforms without pockets.
“The bank did not implement this and despite it being written in the guidance letter, it was not implemented. The clothes initially provided by the bank had pockets,” Ray said, claiming that the bank “ignored” its locker room rules. He urged senior bank officials to explain “how this leniency occurred.” “In my opinion, the business rules of the banks were completely ignored. Perhaps even the senior officials of the bank were not aware of this directive letter, otherwise the error would have been discovered at some level,” he said.
Read also | Ram temple donation row: Champat Rai, Anil Mishra exit, major reforms initiated, confidence in CEO appointment
He further added that the bank selected the youth for the count and retained them as housekeeping employees. There was no immediate response from SBI to this allegation.
The Ram Temple Fund accepts his resignation, and Ray breaks his silence
These statements came even after the Ram Temple Foundation accepted the resignation of Rai as general secretary and Anil Mishra as a member, sacked administrator Gopal Rao, and announced a three-member committee to appoint a new CEO. At a meeting of trust members in Ayodhya, the body also appointed Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh member and trustee Krishna Mohan – who filed the first information report in the case – as interim general secretary.
Eight men have been arrested so far in the case, including Anukalp Mishra, Lakush Mishra, Ram Shankar Yadav ‘Tino’, Manish Yadav, Subhash Srivastava, Avinash Shukla, Rama Shankar Mishra and Karunesh Pandey. Ram Shankar Yadav is one of Rai’s assistants and is related to Manish Yadav. Anukalp Mishra and Luvkush Mishra are related to each other and also trust member Anil Mishra. The police made the arrest last week $79,85,493 of the eight detainees.
Wray broke his silence on the matter on Tuesday, saying he had chosen not to say anything yet “in accordance with the wishes of the trust.” “I chose to remain silent because, as per the Fund’s wishes, the Special Investigation Team submitted its initial report for verification. This report has now been made public,” Ray said, adding that he faced “unfair allegations.”
Rai urged people to wait for the final decision of the special investigation committee, saying he would give an “appropriate response” after the investigation is completed. He added: “The truth will emerge in due time.” “I have been serving in Ayodhya through the organization since October 1991. My public life for almost 45 years has been an open book, wherever I have worked. I respectfully bow to the truth,” he said.
