SBI sought removal of Ram temple donation-counting staff 3 months ago: Cong
Pawan Khera questions who protected officials despite recommendation, links alleged irregularities to wider accountability
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The Congress on Monday claimed that the State Bank of India (SBI) had recommended the removal of officials posted at the donation-counting centre of the Ram temple in Ayodhya three months ago and questioned who had protected them before the alleged embezzlement came to light.
Addressing reporters in Raipur, All India Congress Committee (AICC) Media and Publicity Department chairman Pawan Khera alleged that the reported donation embezzlement at the Ram temple, in which eight people have been arrested so far, was only the beginning.
"Ayodhya ki loot jhanki hai, Kashi-Mathura abhi baaki hai (the alleged loot in Ayodhya was only a glimpse; Kashi and Mathura are yet to come)," Khera said.
He claimed that SBI had flagged concerns over officials deployed at the temple's donation-counting centre months before the alleged irregularities surfaced.
"SBI had recommended three months ago that those posted at the counting centre be removed. Who has been protecting them? Nagpur or Delhi?" he asked.
Targeting Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Khera questioned whether action similar to the state's "bulldozer" drive would be taken against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) or the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) if wrongdoing was established.
"The RSS and PMO were directly looking after the Ram Mandir administration. Ask Adityanath, if there has been wrongdoing there, will bulldozers be sent to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's residence or to PMO? Just ask him this question and he will have no answer," he alleged.
Replying to a question on foreign affairs, Khera claimed the United States was "insulting India every day" while Prime Minister Narendra Modi remained silent.
"Modi ji should give us a list of those he is afraid of and those he is not," he said.
On the reported move by the BJP government in West Bengal to introduce a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill, Khera alleged the issue was being raised to divert attention from the alleged Ram temple donation embezzlement case.
"The purpose is only to change the headlines and divert attention from what is happening in the name of Lord Ram in Ayodhya," he claimed.
Khera was in Raipur to attend the concluding day of a 10-day training camp for Chhattisgarh Congress district unit presidents in Abhanpur.