Ayodhya police interrogate Ram temple donation theft accused Avinash Shukla in jail

Ayodhya police on Tuesday questioned one of the accused in the donation theft case, Avinash Shukla, in the district jail after obtaining permission from the court.

City circle officer Ashutosh Tiwari interrogated Shukla in the jail. The questioning was part of the ongoing investigation into the alleged misappropriation of cash offerings at the Ram temple.

Shukla is among the eight accused currently lodged in judicial custody. Investigators are examining his alleged role in the cash counting and reconciliation process, which they believe was central to the alleged embezzlement of donations.

According to the investigators, Shukla was actively involved in reconciling cash after every round of donation counting. Police suspect he played a key role in the alleged manipulation of cash records and misappropriation of funds during the counting process.

Investigators are probing evidence suggesting that Shukla routinely positioned himself directly in front of CCTV cameras while the counting of donations was underway. Police are examining whether this was done deliberately to obstruct or conceal activities from surveillance footage.

Sources said CO Ashutosh Tiwari questioned Shukla regarding the cash counting mechanism, reconciliation procedures, movement of donation money and the roles played by other accused persons during the counting exercise.

Police are attempting to establish the sequence of events that allegedly enabled the embezzlement.

He was also questioned after cops recovered a CCTV footage recorded on June 5 showing men clad in police uniform and officials of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust raiding the residence of Avinash Shukla following an internal probe.

The footage purportedly captures Shukla being escorted by police while carrying a black bag, which investigators claim contained part of the allegedly stolen donation money.

Police said the questioning is aimed at corroborating statements recorded from other accused and witnesses, as well as verifying documentary and electronic evidence collected during the investigation.

Officials added that the remaining seven arrested accused -- Ramshankar Yadav alias Tinnu, Anukalp Mishra, Karunesh Pandey, Manish Yadav, Lavkush Mishra, Ramashankar Mishra and Subhash Srivastava -- will also be interrogated in jail in a phased manner after obtaining the court permission.

The case is being investigated by the Ayodhya police, which is examining CCTV footage, financial records, cash reconciliation documents and other evidence to ascertain the extent of the alleged fraud and identify the role of each accused.