Oppn MPs stage street play-like protest in Parliament over Ram Temple donation theft

New Delhi: Opposition MPs, including Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Purnia MP Pappu Yadav, on Friday staged a unique protest in Parliament over the alleged embezzlement of donations made to the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

The MPs also questioned the absence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah from Parliament.

Pappu Yadav arrived at Parliament dressed in a saffron attire and staged a street play kind of demonstration.

He was carrying a donation box to highlight the allegations of financial irregularities related to the Ram Temple donations in Ayodhya. During the protest, Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Priyanka Gandhi, and several other Opposition leaders were seen making symbolic donations into the box.

Speaking during the protest, Pappu Yadav raised slogans and accused those responsible for allegedly misusing funds collected in the name of Lord Ram.

"Ram Ram japiyo re, sab maal hadapiyo re. Man mein Ram, Chintan mein Ram, Kan mein Shiv, Jivan Mein Sanso Mein," he told reporters.

Samajwadi Party MP, Dharmendra Yadav, said the demonstration was aimed at drawing attention to allegations that devotees who made donations were not issued receipts and that CCTV footage related to the matter had allegedly been deleted.

"This is a symbolic protest to highlight what has happened in Ayodhya. Devotees made donations, but there are allegations that receipts were not issued and CCTV footage was deleted. We want a discussion on this issue in Parliament," he said.

He also alleged that there had been irregularities in the handling of temple donations and urged the Speaker to allow a debate on the matter.

The protesting MPs were also seen carrying a banner that read, "Amit Shah Sansad Se Gayab Kyun? (Why is Amit Shah absent from Parliament?)."

Earlier, on July 26, the Uttar Pradesh government officially reconstituted the SIT to investigate allegations of irregularities in donations and offerings made at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

Meanwhile, after Ayodhya's Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, responsible for overseeing the Ram Temple's administration, appointed IIT Bombay alumnus Jagdish Aphale as its first secretary, the Opposition leaders questioned the government as well as the organisation regarding measures to prevent misappropriation of the temple's funds in the future.

Aphale has also been reportedly made the joint signatory for the temple body's financial transactions, following allegations of embezzlement of donations made at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

Samajwadi Party spokesperson Ashutosh Verma urged the government and the Trust to explain "whether the appointment will prevent future irregularities and what measures are being put in place for that?"

"There are still unanswered questions about why no FIR has been lodged against Champat Rai. Until the government takes strict action, we will believe that influential people continue to be protected," he told IANS.

Talking to IANS, Uttar Pradesh Congress President Ajay Rai said: "The Trust was constituted for a sacred purpose. However, people associated with the RSS indulged in corruption and theft in the name of Lord Ram...The Ram Temple Trust should be reconstituted and placed under the guidance of seers, including the Shankaracharyas."

"The people of Ayodhya should also be included in the Trust, as they have a deep and historic association with Lord Ram and have served him for generations," he added.

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