In a significant legal development, Sudhakar Singh, a Member of Parliament from the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), has approached the Supreme Court of India. The MP seeks an independent investigation into the financial dealings of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust amid allegations of donation misappropriation intended for the construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
This public interest litigation (PIL) petition requests the transfer of the current investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), with the Supreme Court overseeing the process. Furthermore, the petition proposes the establishment of a temporary oversight committee supervised by the court. This committee would comprise retired judicial officers, financial experts, and individuals with impeccable integrity, tasked with monitoring the Trust’s financial and administrative operations during the ongoing investigation.
The petition underscores that its requests are strictly about ensuring transparency and accountability in the Trust’s financial management and do not intend to interfere with the religious activities, customs, or practices associated with the Ram Mandir.
In addition to calling for a CBI probe, the petition demands the preservation of all financial records, both physical and electronic. This includes account books, bank records, UPI logs, CCTV footage, emails, and servers, to safeguard against any potential destruction or tampering of evidence.
The petition also advocates for the Trust to regularly publish audited financial statements, details of donations, fund usage, and other financial data on its official website while ensuring the privacy of donors is maintained. It further requests that the Trust be restricted from making significant financial or administrative decisions, such as fund allocation, awarding substantial contracts, creating third-party rights, asset alienation, or major investments.
Additionally, the petition asks the Supreme Court to mandate the Trust to present a detailed account of all donations and contributions it has received since its inception. This legal move follows closely on the heels of another PIL that the Supreme Court recently declined to list urgently. That earlier petition, filed by advocates Ajay Kumar Rai and Dinesh Kumar Yadav, also sought a CBI investigation into alleged financial discrepancies and missing donations related to the Ram Mandir.
The previous petition was mentioned before a vacation Bench comprising Justices MM Sundresh and Sheel Nagu, who noted the potential for tampering with electronic evidence and requested immediate measures for record preservation. However, the Bench declined urgent listing, advising the petitioners to submit their petition to the court registry, stating the matter would be reviewed in due course.
Similar to the earlier plea, the current petition argues that the existing Special Investigation Team (SIT) lacks the necessary institutional independence and forensic expertise needed to adequately investigate the alleged financial irregularities involving the Trust. Filed by advocates Satyam Singh and Jaswanthi A, this petition aims to ensure a thorough and impartial inquiry into the Trust’s financial conduct.
