Centre can’t escape accountability for Ram Temple donation theft: Congress

Chandigarh: The Congress on Friday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi cannot escape accountability for the theft of Ram Temple donations, since he has taken credit for everything.

Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate told the media here that when PM Modi sidelined everyone else, including the Shankaracharyas, to claim exclusive credit for everything, he now cannot remain silent. She was accompanied by Punjab party president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and other leaders.

Shrinate, the Chairperson of the AICC’s Social Media and Digital Platforms, said this was not merely a theft or dacoity, but a brutal attack on the faith and trust of crores of Hindus who donated their hard earnings to the temple.

She said 70 thefts had taken place within 40 days and this had never happened in history, adding that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the RSS had committed a cardinal sin.

She questioned the choice of the head of the Special Investigation Team, Vijay Vishwas Pant, who himself was facing a first information report (FIR) for fraud, saying they could not get anyone better. She also noted that even the SIT report was not made public.

She asked why the trust general secretary, Champat Rai Bansal, and his colleague, Anil Mishra, were left out, and said that mere resignation was no answer.

Questioning Champat Rai’s role, she asked why he needed to hire a private security agency owned by a former BJP MP for Rs 1 crore per month when the Uttar Pradesh Police and Central security forces were already posted at the Ram Temple.

The Congress leader also questioned the role of the trust treasurer, Govind Giri, who claimed he did not live in Ayodhya and would depute someone for five days a month to review the accounts. She questioned whether this was the sense of responsibility these people had, adding they had no respect for the faith of crores of Hindus.

Shrinate said the trust was constituted and its members were chosen by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and their only qualification was that they were from the RSS.

She also raised several questions and sought answers from the government, asking why the Ram Mandir Trust had been exempted from the RTI (Right to Information Act). She said L&T had offered to construct the temple for a token amount of Re 1, and this was also rejected for obvious reasons, as that would not have left any room for financial manipulations.

IANS