Ram Temple donation case: Defence challenges BNS charges, plans court plea

The legal aid counsel representing the accused in the alleged Ram Temple donation embezzlement case has said he will move court challenging the legal provisions invoked by the Uttar Pradesh Police, arguing that the investigation has been conducted under incorrect sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Kulshekhar Singh, appointed by the Uttar Pradesh government as legal aid defence counsel after the Faizabad Bar Association declined to represent the accused, said he would seek directions from the court for the police to investigate the case under what he described as the appropriate legal provisions before filing the chargesheet.

Singh argued that the police had simultaneously invoked provisions relating to theft and criminal breach of trust or embezzlement, which he claimed were not legally compatible in the manner they had been applied. He also questioned the inclusion of a provision carrying life imprisonment, contending that the accused were first-time offenders.

The lawyer further disputed the police's decision to treat the accused as public servants, arguing that the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is not a public authority. According to him, had the correct legal provisions been invoked, the accused could have sought bail before a local court.

He said he would begin preparing bail applications next week but did not specify when they would be filed.

The Faizabad Bar Association had earlier resolved that its members would not represent the accused in the case and warned of disciplinary action against any member who did so. Singh said he was not a member of the association and was therefore free to appear for the accused.

The alleged donation misappropriation came to light in early June, prompting the Uttar Pradesh government to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT). Following the submission of the SIT's preliminary report, an FIR was registered on 25 June and eight individuals associated with the temple's donation-counting process were arrested.

Police have said that Rs 14.25 lakh was recovered from one of the accused, Lavkush Mishra, during the investigation.

The matter is currently before the Supreme Court, which has directed that the investigation continue under a newly constituted SIT.

Separately, the Ayodhya Development Authority has granted an additional week to Supriya Mishra, wife of Lavkush Mishra, to submit documents relating to a house under construction in Ayodhya. The authority is examining whether the required approvals for the construction were obtained.

With PTI inputs