Video: Champat Rai seen at religious event hosted by key Ram temple theft accused

A video has surfaced showing former Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra General Secretary Champat Rai attending a religious event allegedly organised by Anukalp Mishra, one of the accused in the Ram temple donation theft case.

The video, accessed by India Today TV, shows Champat Rai at Mishra's residence on April 30, the seventh and final day of a week-long Ram Katha event (a religious discourse programme dedicated to Lord Ram). The clip shows Champat Rai and Anukalp Mishra together during the event. The event is said to be hosted by the latter, though police have not confirmed the development.

The religious event was organised at Mishra's residence and continued for seven days. It is alleged that more than Rs 50 lakh was spent on the programme. The development comes amid an ongoing investigation into the alleged misappropriation of donations offered by devotees at the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

So far, there is no allegation in the donation theft case against Rai, who has resigned after the case surfaced. Recently, members of the Ayodhya Bar Association have sought an FIR against Rai, alleging a cover-up in the theft case.

The emergence of the video comes days after Uttar Pradesh Police arrested several accused, including Mishra, in connection with the alleged Ram temple donation theft case. Investigators are probing allegations that funds donated by devotees were misappropriated through fraudulent means.

Authorities have not indicated that the Ram Katha event itself is under investigation. However, the video has drawn attention because of Mishra's alleged role in the donation theft case and his apparent proximity to prominent figures associated with the Ram temple.

The embezzlement of donations at the Ram temple came to light on June 7. An FIR was registered on June 25 on the basis of a preliminary report submitted by the SIT constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government.

Eight people – Anukalp Mishra, Lavkush Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Manish Kumar Yadav, Karunesh Pandey, Ramashankar Mishra, Subhash Srivastava, Ramshankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav – associated with the temple's donation-counting process have been arrested so far, and the investigation is underway.

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