The central mastermind of the Ram temple donations theft racket explicitly ‘taught employees how to steal’ and subsequently roped in his nephew and an estimated 200 external handlers to run the operation, claims a three-part investigation, ‘Operation Chanda Chori’, by Times Now.The investigation features an on-camera whistleblower, a close aide to SC-appointed Ram Mandir trustee Mahant Dinendra Das, who reveals a highly organised racket siphoning off gold, silver, and material donations meant for the temple.The investigation also reveals a highly sophisticated modus operandi designed to siphon temple gold and silver under the guise of processing. Gold and silver offerings were allegedly packed into sacks and transported via trains to Karnataka for melting, completely bypassing local jewellers in Ayodhya, Faizabad, or Lucknow. Handlers deliberately manipulated transportation logs. For example, transporting 26kg of gold while carrying an official voucher for only 25kg. If intercepted, the voucher covered the bulk, and if undetected, the extra gold was immediately pocketed. While the temple’s heavy precious metals were sent by rail, the masterminds travelled via commercial and chartered flights.The investigation also alleged misappropriation of material donations.A consignment consisting of two truckloads of winter jackets, sent by a donor in Mumbai for low-income temple staff, was allegedly hijacked. Only 40 jackets reached the workers; the remaining bulk of the shipment was reportedly diverted to the private residence of a senior trust member and illegally sold into the commercial market.To ensure the racket continued without interference, the “syndicate actively isolated and blinded key members of the trust”.The whistleblower claimed that communication channels were intentionally cut to keep SC-appointed trustees, including Mahant Dinendra Das, in the dark.
