Overview
- The Uttar Pradesh government formed a three-member Special Investigation Team on June 13 at the temple trust’s request to examine allegations that donations and valuables were misappropriated.
- Investigators have questioned senior trust figures including Champat Rai, Dr. Anil Mishra and Gopal Rao along with counting staff and bank officials as part of the on-site inquiry.
- Authorities say about ₹2 crore and some gold were recovered from a temple employee’s residence but the India Bullion and Jewellers Association and reporting say roughly 60 kg of donated silver bars remain untraced.
- The SIT has identified multiple suspects — reports put the number at around 25 — and sources say the team will submit a report to the chief minister within days with possible arrests or removals to follow.
- The probe is testing the temple’s layered controls, such as CCTV-monitored hundis, dual-key seals, a bank-staffed counting room and auditor sign-offs, and has renewed calls for mandatory audits and stronger oversight of high-value religious donations.