New Delhi: Senior Congress leader and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh announced Friday he would undertake a padyatra from the Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain to the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, the two major Hindu religious sites about 850-900 km apart, beginning 2 October.
The announcement comes amid a raging controversy over the alleged theft and embezzlement of donations at the Ayodhya shrine.
Singh also put up a banner outside his Bhopal residence declaring “Ram Mandir ke chanda choron aur chadhawa choron ka pravesh varjit hai” (No entry for those who stole Ram Mandir offerings and donations.)
The announcement came just hours after the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) issued its first official response to the alleged scam. RSS General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale termed the alleged theft from the temple’s donation boxes “unfortunate”. He called for a fair and time-bound probe by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), and said those responsible should face the harshest punishment.
He also urged Hindus to remain united and cautioned them against attempts by “anti-Hindu” and “anti-national” forces to use the incident to defame Hindu society.
The Congress party also officially responded to the RSS statement. Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh accused the Sangh of shielding those responsible for the alleged fraud.
“The clean chit given by the RSS is disgraceful and shameful. The fact is chanda chori on a large scale by people very much part of its network has taken place. It is a fraudulent outfit,” Ramesh said on X.
Congress Communications Department chairman Pawan Khera also hit back at the RSS over its response to the alleged Ram Temple donation scam.
In a post on X, Khera alleged that the RSS was attempting to “cover up” the alleged irregularities rather than exposing the truth. He claimed that Hosabale’s statement was aimed at protecting the Sangh’s image and questioned the Uttar Pradesh government’s SIT probe.
The SIT, he further alleged, lacked transparency and appeared designed to shield the “big crocodiles” while sacrificing “small fish”.
The Congress has previously also demanded a Supreme Court-monitored investigation into the alleged scam and accountability from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. It has repeatedly questioned whether the alleged theft could have taken place without institutional lapses.
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who has been among the party’s most vocal leaders on the issue, termed the alleged fraud “tragic”, “shameful” and the “gravest sin”, saying the reported theft of donations had “stunned the entire nation”.
“If people have given, women have given from their savings, poor people have given… who’s responsible? If you collected them, it’s your responsibility to keep them safe,” she said, slamming the trust.
The controversy surfaced early last month after allegations of mishandling and embezzlement of donations surfaced. A Special Investigation Team (SIT), constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government at the request of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, submitted a preliminary report flagging alleged irregularities in the handling of temple donations.
Based on the report, an FIR was registered, and eight people associated with the counting and handling of donations were arrested. Investigators are probing alleged cash embezzlement, security lapses and violations of standard operating procedures in the counting of offerings, with the probe continuing.
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)