In a hard line on the matter, Congress has ratcheted up its rhetoric on the supposed donation fraud in Ayodhya. They are not only putting the onus on the BJP-RSS but also chiding Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for their inaction. To them, this is a systemic issue; they have even put a label on the BJP’s modus operandi: ‘vote chori, seat chori, chanda chori’.
What set off the row
It all comes down to an investigation into temple money. The Uttar Pradesh government’s Special Investigation Team put forward some initial results, and by June 25 an FIR was in the books.
Eight people are in police custody. Word from the investigators is that they have put their hands on some foreign currency and close to Rs 80 lakh in cash from six of the accused. The work is not done yet.
This is what the opposition is making of it:
– An FIR filed on June 25 in the aftermath of the SIT’s report
– Eight taken in, with the case still open
– A haul of nearly Rs 80 lakh and some hard currency
Congress says: a pattern of scams
Jairam Ramesh, the general secretary, has put the figure of siphoned-off donations in the ‘thousands of crores’. He is asking for the harshest measures against the culprits and an inquiry under the watch of a Supreme Court judge.
Ramesh does not see this in isolation. He sees it as part of the ruling party’s way of doing things, with the BJP he says is built on the triad of 'vote chori, seat chori, chanda chori‘. The donation fiasco is, in his view, just one piece of a larger strategy.
Putting the onus on the top
Then there is the prime minister. Ramesh is of the opinion that Mr. Modi, who opened the Ram Temple on January 22, 2024, should be giving the public a straight answer. It was a move made right before the Lok Sabha polls, which the BJP then lost in Ayodhya, he points out.
‘Shocking’ is how he describes the reticence of the PM and the home minister. They need to put on record where they stand on these claims and the investigation, he says.
The RSS and the trust in the crosshairs
The RSS has not been let off. Ramesh has no time for their side of the story, calling it ‘disgraceful and shameful’. For an outfit that holds itself up as the standard-bearer of integrity, he says, they have come up short.
He has drawn a direct line between the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust and the BJP-RSS. It is ‘beyond imagination’ to him that the RSS, the PM or the home minister are in the dark. And as for Nipendra Mishra? Ramesh asks what his role has been in what he terms a ‘tightly-locked, interconnected ecosystem’.
Electoral bonds in the mix
Ramesh has also made a point of connecting this to the electoral bonds, now defunct. The Supreme Court put an end to it, but Ramesh says it was used to raise ‘hundreds of crores’ on the principle of ‘chanda do dhanda lo’.
The ‘chanda business’ is in the BJP’s ‘DNA’, he contends. What is being alleged here is, to the opposition, a matter of course when it comes to the kind of funding the party is known for.
Why it is in the news
There is a lot at stake. As Ramesh has noted, the temple project has seen contributions from all sides of the aisle. Should any of this be substantiated, it would be a blow to the confidence of donors and the institution alike.
For Ramesh, the embezzlement is a given and of a large order. He has called it a ‘ghotala’ and a ‘scam by the BJP-RSS ecosystem’ and is not mincing words about the need for accountability.
Where things stand
The ball is in the court of the SIT for the time being. With eight in the dock and some Rs 80 lakh in hand, the case is moving. Congress, however, is looking for a sitting Supreme Court judge to oversee it and for some quick retribution.
Two things are on everyone’s mind: will the state go along with a court-watched inquiry, and will the PM and the home minister make a statement? Those are the answers the stakeholders are waiting for.
