New Delhi: Thought probe status report filed in Supreme Court by UP SIT in Ram temple donation theft case revealed 105 instances of unauthorised currency
removal from counting room and talks about clear evidence of misappropriation of cash, it says all valuables items in form of gold, silver received as donations remains safe, fully accounted for and is “free of discrepancies” The CJI Bench said in its order which recorded SIT’s findings: “The status report further indicates that particular allegations regarding valuable donations reported in the media and on social media have been duly verified. These allegations included the alleged donation of 200 kilograms of silver bricks, 38.288 kilograms of silver bricks, a silver necklace, Charan Paduka, and a donation related to the Ramcharitmanas. The involved individuals have been interviewed, and the pertinent materials have been examined by them. No discrepancies were identified during this verification process.” Soon after news of largescale donation funds misappropriation broke, there were several reports in print electronic and social media regarding the theft and disappearance of gold, silver, and a gold-plated Ramcharitmanas at the Ayodhya Ram Temple. Regarding 803 other valuables articles also SIT said “no discrepancies found." The SC order says: “Report discloses that the receipts generated by the TCS software for 803 valuable articles have been verified, and their relevant records have been found to be with the Trust. These articles are stored in a State Bank of India locker, which was physically checked. In so far as these 803 articles are concerned, no discrepancies were found during the verification.” Regarding 86 valuable articles in respect of which receipts have not been issued, SIT report says “these articles have been separately identified and physically verified”. With regard to approximately 944.411 kilograms of white metal (supposed to be silver) have been sent by the Trust to Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited for melting, SIT report says pertaining to the said white metal has also been examined, and the relevant records scrutinized. Regarding theft of donations, the SC order which reproduced parts of SIT report had said “examination has revealed 105 instances of unauthorized currency removal or concealment from the counting room, involving assistance from other individuals participating in the counting process. Some of the accused have been identified along with details provided on the number of times they engaged in misappropriation, etc., along with other related information, as outlined in paragraph 12 of the report.” “Status report further emphasises the estimated amount misappropriated by each accused individual, also noting that existing evidence suggests the suspected misappropriation of currency took place within the counting room during the process of counting and handling the currency.”
