LUKCNOW: A photograph showing two of the accused in the alleged Ram Mandir donation embezzlement case inside the temple’s counting room has surfaced for the first time.The image shows Avinash Shukla and Anukalp Mishra inside the room where donations were counted.Police sources said investigators have recovered cash from multiple accused during the investigation. According to the sources, Rs 20.39 lakh was recovered from Avinash Shukla, Rs 18.07 lakh from Karunesh Pandey, Rs 16.82 lakh from Anukalp Mishra, Rs 14.25 lakh from Lavkush Mishra, Rs 7.32 lakh from Ramashankar Mishra and Rs 1 lakh from Ramashankar Yadav, also known as Tinnu.On Friday, the SIT visited the Ram Mandir premises to carry out further investigation. The team has been granted a 15-day extension to complete its inquiry, allowing it to widen the scope of the investigation.Officials said the probe would be expanded further to ensure every aspect of the case is examined and that no guilty person is spared.Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Police intensified their investigation by questioning Avinash Shukla at the Special Operations Group (SOG) office in Ayodhya. Ayodhya Circle Officer (CO) Ashutosh Tiwari and several other officials were present during the interrogation.Shukla, who was associated with counting offerings at the Ram temple, was produced before an Ayodhya court on Thursday and remanded to 24-hour police custody.Earlier, on 28 June, a police team led by Circle Officer Ashutosh Kumar visited Shukla’s residence in Ayodhya to gather evidence as part of the investigation.The controversy began after an FIR was registered on 25 June over the alleged embezzlement of donations received at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple. The Trust has said it is committed to a fair investigation and to preserving the faith of devotees.According to officials, the case has been registered under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Sections 306, 316(5), 317(4), 317(5), 61 and 3(5), following directions from the Uttar Pradesh government.Those named in the FIR include Avinash Shukla, Anukalp Mishra, Lavkush Mishra, Tinnu Yadav, Manish Yadav and others.The case followed allegations by former Samajwadi Party MLA from Ayodhya, Pawan Pandey, who claimed that between Rs 7 crore and Rs 7.5 crore in temple donations had been misappropriated.On 29 June, an Ayodhya court remanded all the accused to 14-day judicial custody as the investigation into the alleged financial irregularities continued.Former Trust General Secretary Champat Rai and trustee Anil Mishra earlier resigned, taking what they described as moral responsibility for the controversy. Police have recorded Champat Rai’s statement, while statements of other senior Trust office-bearers, including Anil Mishra, may also be recorded if required during the course of the investigation.
