Ram Mandir case: Alvi likens accused to Mahmud of Ghazni, wants probe

Congress' Rashid Alvi compared the Ram Mandir donation embezzlement accused to invader Mahmud of Ghazni, alleging they 'looted' the temple. He has demanded a Supreme Court or High-Court led investigation into the alleged multi-crore scam.

Alvi compares accused to Ghazni, demands probe

Congress leader Rashid Alvi on Sunday targeted the accused in the Ram Mandir donation embezzlement case, drawing a sharp parallel between the accused and the Islamic invader Mahmud of Ghazni, and alleged that, much like the ruler who sacked the Hindu temples, these perpetrators too "looted" the temple.

Speaking to ANI, the Congress leader demanded a Supreme Court or High Court-led investigation into the Ram Mandir donation embezzlement case. "...This is theft, this is robbery, this is tampering with the faith of millions of people. There should not only be an investigation but a High Court or Supreme Court judge should conduct the investigation and all these people should be sent to jail. I want to ask what is the difference between Mahmud of Ghazni and these people? He too had looted temples and these people have also looted the temple. He had no faith in temples but these people do have faith in temples... The strictest possible action should be taken..." said Alvi.

Mahmud of Ghazni, who ruled the Ghaznavid Empire from 998 to 1030 AD, is historically noted for a series of military campaigns that expanded his empire's reach across the Indian subcontinent.

FIR registered, SIT begins probe

Meanwhile, a First Information Report (FIR) was registered on June 25 in connection with the alleged embezzlement of donations received at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. According to officials, the case has been filed under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Sections 306, 316(5), 317(4), 317(5), 61 and 3(5), on the directions of the Uttar Pradesh Government. Those who have been named in the FIR are: Anukalp Mishra, Lavkush Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Tinnu Yadav, Manish Yadav and others.

This comes after allegations were made by former SP MLA from Ayodhya, Pawan Pandey, who claimed that between Rs 7 crore and Rs 7.5 crore in donations were misappropriated from the Ram Mandir. Following the allegations, on June 14, the state government constituted a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged scam involving offerings made at the Ram Mandir, following a request from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir Trust. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)