Who is Champat Rai, Ram Mandir trust chief who quit in donation theft case?

Ever since allegations surfaced on the embezzlement of donations at the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, one person who has come under heavy fire from the opposition is the temple trust chief Champat Rai. After all, as Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust general secretary, Rai was responsible for overseeing the temple funds. On Friday, Rai became the first high-profile leader to resign, a day after an FIR was registered and eight people were arrested.

Rai, a prominent face of the Ram Mandir movement, resigned, taking moral responsibility for the theft of donation funds. Around Rs 7-7.5 crore is reported to be missing.

WHY CHAMPAT RAI RESIGNED?

The noose around Rai tightened following the arrest of Ramashankar Yadav alias Tinnu, his driver and close aide. The other seven who have been arrested include temple staff responsible for counting cash and a retired banker who supervised the process.

However, since the controversy erupted, the spotlight has been on Rai. Rai initially dismissed allegations of theft of donation funds, but later welcomed the SIT probe that was ordered by the Yogi Adityanath government.

The SIT submitted its preliminary findings to the government earlier this week, naming the eight arrested. It led to allegations from the Samajwadi Party that influential individuals were being shielded. It is against this backdrop that Rai quit his post on Friday.

Many will recall Rai as the key face of the Ram temple movement. In fact, his supporters claim that Rai, who never married, devoted his life to the movement since the 1980s. But few know his backstory and his long journey to eventually becoming the Ram Mandir trust chief.

WHO IS CHAMPAT RAI?

Born in 1946 in Uttar Pradesh's Bijnor, Rai was influenced by the ideology of the RSS from an early age and joined the organisation. Few know that Rai taught Chemistry at RSM Degree College in Bijnor before joining the Ram temple movement.

He was also arrested during the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi. There are still visuals of Rai being arrested from his college in 1977. His supporters claimed he was arrested due to his association with the RSS. He spent nearly 18 months in prison.

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