Champat Rai Blames-Money theft was done due to SBI security lapses

Champat Rai, the former general secretary of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, has accused the State Bank of India’s Ayodhya branch of security lapses that allegedly culminated in the theft of donations from the Ram Temple.

Rai, who resigned as the chief of the trust that manages the temple on moral grounds, appeared before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the theft. At the July 6 meeting, he submitted a written response, accusing the bank of violating the terms of its contract with the trust.

The bank was responsible for counting the donation money in the Ram Temple.

“As per the MoU, all security measures were taken — like CCTV cameras were installed in the counting room and a door with iron bars was installed on it. The bank advised that counting should be done by sitting on chairs and keeping the money on a table, which helped in the theft,” he wrote in his statement to the SIT.

He said joint guidelines on the counting of donation money had been issued in February 2025, which were allegedly ignored by the bank.(UPDATED ON 7TH JULY 2026)