All eight persons named as accused in a case pertaining to alleged irregularities in donations made to the Ram Temple in Ayodhya were arrested on Friday, officials reported, adding that a First Information Report (FIR) had been filed on Thursday after receiving a complaint from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomu Teerth Kshetra Trust.

The trust, which reportedly manages the affairs of the Ram temple, lodged the complaint after stumbling upon the findings of a preliminary probe conducted by a Special Investigation Team (SIT). The FIR names Ramashankar Yadav alias Tinnu, an aide to the trust’s General Secretary Champat Rai, along with seven other people.

Probe focuses on handling on temple donations

A senior police officer familiar with the investigation said that officials are examining the alleged role of Ramashankar Yadav in the collection, handling and movement of donations received at the temple.

The co-accused in the case have been identified as Anukalp Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Karunesh Pandey, Manish Yaav, Lavkush Mishra, Ramashankar Mishra and Subhash Shrivastava, a retired bank employee who had been entrusted with counting the donations.

The investigating police personnel are scrutinising the procedures followed in collecting, transporting and accounting for devotees’ offerings, while also assessing whether established protocols were violated.

SIT report triggers criminal proceedings

Notably, the FIR had been registered shortly after the SIT submitted its preliminary report recommending criminal action in the case. The allegations of irregularities had first been raised by Samajwadi Party Leader Tej Narayan Pandey, prompting closer scrutiny of the temple’s donation management system.

Sections 306, 316(5), 317(4), 317(5), 61 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) have been invoked against all the accused, which pertain to offences such as criminal breach of trust, cheating, theft and criminal conspiracy.

SIT formed on June 13 examined collection, storage, surveillance

The UP government had issued orders on June 13 to form an SIT to probe the case, after receiving a request from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. The team conducted its preliminary inquiry in Ayodhya over five days, from June 15 to 20, 2026.

Sources said the SIT closely examined donation collection boxes, counting procedures, storage arrangements, accounting practices, access control mechanism and surveillance systems. The inquiry identified prima facie irregularities in the handling of temple offerings.

The probe is likely to deepen, with officials seeking to ascertain the extent of the alleged siphoning of donations.