NEW DELHI: The Congress party Monday claimed the State Bank of India (SBI) had recommended removing officials posted at the donation counting centre at Ayodhya Ram Temple, while taunting the ruling BJP as the probe into the fund embezzlement case widens.Calling the arrest of eight people in the case “only a glimpse”, Congress leader Pawan Khera targeted those “protecting” the people behind the alleged fund embezzlement.Khera tweaked the RSS-BJP’s popular Ram Mandir movement slogan in a piercing attack, saying, “Ayodhya ki loot jhanki hai, Kashi-Mathura abhi baaki hai (the alleged loot in Ayodhya was only a glimpse, Kashi and Mathura were yet to come)”.The Congress leader alleged, “SBI had recommended three months ago that those posted at the donation counting centre be removed. Who has been protecting them? Nagpur or Delhi?”Khera also targeted Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and said he should be asked whether bulldozer action would be taken against the RSS or the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) over alleged irregularities in the handling of donations and offerings made by devotees at the Ram Temple.“The RSS and PMO were directly looking after the Ram Mandir administration. Ask Adityanath, if there has been wrongdoing there, will bulldozers be sent to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s residence or to the PMO? Just ask him this question and he will have no answer,” he was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.On the reported move by the new BJP government in West Bengal to bring a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) bill, Khera alleged such issues were being raised to divert people’s attention from the Ram Temple donation theft case.“The purpose (of the UCC bill) is only to change the headlines and divert attention from what is happening in the name of Lord Ram in Ayodhya,” he claimed.Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court refused to grant an urgent hearing on a petition seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)-led multi-agency probe into the alleged embezzlement case.The top court observed that “heavens are not going to fall” if the matter is heard after the court resumes regular functioning following the summer break.The plea came amid an ongoing police investigation into the case. As part of the probe, former Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust general secretary Champat Rai’s statement has been recorded by the police, while statements of other senior trust officials, including trustee Anil Mishra, may be recorded if required.Earlier, the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust said it was “shocked, hurt, and deeply saddened” by the allegations and reiterated its commitment to a fair investigation. The Trust also confirmed receiving the resignations of Champat Rai and trustee Anil Mishra, adding that the matter would be considered at its next meeting.Seeking to reassure devotees, the Trust said all valuables personally offered to Lord Ram, including silver bricks and jewellery, were safe and fully accounted for, expressing confidence that the truth would ultimately prevail.
