Ram temple donation theft played with the sentiments of people, says Dimple Yadav

New Delhi: Samajwadi Party MP Dimple Yadav on Tuesday termed the alleged theft of donations from the Ram Temple a serious issue, saying it has hurt the sentiments of people across the country.

Speaking to reporters outside Parliament, Dimple Yadav said questions need to be answered regarding the alleged theft of donations, precious metals, and ornaments from the temple.

“The issue is how much donation, how many metals, and how many ornaments were stolen from the Ram Temple. There were also allegations of land scams. The question is where the money went and who benefited from it. Nobody knows how many crores of rupees may have been involved in these land deals. This is indeed a very serious matter because it has, somewhere, played with the sentiments of the country,” she said.

Samajwadi Party MP Dimple Yadav further said, “We will continuously make this demand because Ram Mandir is connected to people’s emotions, and this is the heritage of our country… We want whatever devotion and emotion with which people have given this money to be used in the right way.”

Samajwadi Party MLA Shivpal Yadav also criticised the BJP government, alleging financial mismanagement.

“This government presents a flawed budget every year and is unable to utilise nearly 30 per cent of it. What kind of government is this? It allows theft of donations, temple offerings, and even fails to properly utilise public funds,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Rajya Sabha was adjourned briefly amid chaos and protests from both the NDA and Opposition MPs, who accused each other of disrespecting Lord Ram, with the treasury benches demanding an apology.

NDA members erupted in protest in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday after Congress president and Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge raised the alleged Ram Temple donation theft issue during Zero Hour, triggering a major ruckus that disrupted proceedings.

Opposition MPs began sloganeering over the matter involving the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.

Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan intervened, stating that he would call the Leader of Opposition, but members must also listen to the other side, as that was the tradition of the House.

Opposition MPs, including Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, also protested in Parliament House complex on Tuesday against the alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya and “police excesses” against student protesters.

Carrying placards against the government, MPs protested in front of the Makar Dwar of Parliament, raising slogans such as ‘chhanda chor, gaddi chor,’ and also asking why Union Home Minister Amit Shah is absent from Parliament.

The MPs also kept donation boxes at the spot to symbolise the alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple and lined up around them to raise slogans against the government. Some MPs also put cash in the box to symbolise the donations made and “theft” that took place later.

Besides Priyanka Gandhi, SP’s Dimple Yadav and Dharmendra Yadav, Trinamool Congress’ Sagarika Ghose, RJD’s Sanjay Yadav and Manoj Jha, RSP’s N.K. Premchandran, among others, participated in the protest.

IANS