Supreme Court Orders SIT Restructuring in Ram Mandir Donation Theft Probe

In response to the allegations of financial discrepancies at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, the Supreme Court has instructed the Uttar Pradesh government to obtain orders regarding the restructuring of the SIT that is currently working on the investigation.

Chief Justice Surya Kant's bench expressed its preference for a senior IPS officer with vast prior experience in such investigations to lead the investigation.

The Supreme Court will hear the plea again on July 27, when the Uttar Pradesh government is expected to update the court on the progress of the SIT probe in the matter.

The Special Investigative Team (SIT) set up by the Uttar Pradesh Government has submitted a status report before the Supreme Court of India in connection with the Ram Mandir donation theft. The status report was filed in a sealed cover before a three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant.

The case is slated to be taken up by the apex court on Monday. So far, eight people have been arrested in the matter. The investigators now need to trace the entire money trail to catch more assets and recipients; as per police, more recoveries and great revelations about the case are expected soon.

The SIT looking into the Ram Mandir donation scam has pointed out that prima facie CCTV footage has shown the existence of roughly 70 suspicious occurrences during the period between April 27 and June 5, 2026. In the footage itself, the staff is seen hiding cash in different bundles.

In particular, the report reveals the reasons behind the ease of the crime, such as lack of checking of people entering and exiting, poor regulation regarding the belongings of individuals, and intersection of cash from diverse donation boxes.

According to the report, an amount of Rs 78.94 lakh has been recovered from certain employees prior to the investigation. Further, it is claimed that Rs 2.25 lakh was recovered from the washroom connected to the counting room on June 4.

The report further indicates that prima facie evidence to prove the claims made on social media about the missing silver bricks or some other costly offering, have not been discovered. Eight persons accused have been detained in this matter.

Regarding the Ram Temple donation theft, the police have recovered a four-wheeler, a motorcycle, gold jewellery, cash, and important financial documents in an overnight raid based on the information obtained from the mastermind of the crime Ram Shankar Yadav alias Tinnu during his 39-hour remand in police custody.