New Delhi, Nov 1: The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday a batch of petitions seeking a court-monitored investigation into alleged financial irregularities in the handling of donations and offerings received by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.
According to the cause list uploaded on the apex court’s website, the matters will be taken up by a bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana.
The petitions include a writ plea filed by advocate Narendra Kumar Goswami, a criminal writ petition filed by petitioner-in-person Ajay Kumar Rai, a separate plea by Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Sudhakar Singh and another petition filed by Hindu Dharma Parishad.
At the previous hearing on September 21, the Uttar Pradesh government informed the court that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the alleged irregularities had substantially completed its investigation and would file a charge sheet within two days.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre and the Uttar Pradesh government, told the bench that a status report had been submitted in a sealed cover.
He further informed the court that the deadline for filing the charge sheet was September 25 and that it would be submitted within the stipulated period.
Taking the submissions on record, the Supreme Court had permitted the Sessions Judge concerned to pass an appropriate order in accordance with law.
The status report detailed the SIT’s analysis of CCTV footage and other material to identify the accused, besides examining records relating to donations and offerings. The report reportedly identified 105 incidents of theft of donations at the temple.
It also stated that receipts for valuable items received as offerings were generated through software and that such valuables were kept in State Bank of India lockers.
Earlier, the apex court had directed the Uttar Pradesh government to reconstitute the SIT to ensure a fair, speedy and effective investigation. The reconstituted team is headed by Inspector General of Police Kiran S, with DIG Ayodhya Somen Verma and SSP Ayodhya Gaurav Grover as members.
The bench had also indicated that a forensic auditor should be associated with the investigation in view of the allegations of misappropriation of trust funds.
The petitioners have sought preservation of donation-related records, greater transparency in accounting and a comprehensive forensic audit of the Trust’s finances.
