The Ram Mandir Trust's Land Deal and Donation-Counting Scandal

“The Trust is accountable for every rupee and every item of the donations it receives for the Ram temple, which are independently audited.”

— Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, Trust responsible for constructing and managing donations for the Ram temple in Ayodhya · 27 August 2020

Reflects the Trust's publicly reported position on the accountability and auditing of donations, as described in its own disclosures and in reporting on the 2026 donation-counting scandal; this is a paraphrase of the Trust's stated position rather than a verbatim quotation from a single document, which this entry has not reviewed directly.

That public donations for the Ram temple are collected, counted, and accounted for transparently, with all cash and in-kind offerings properly recorded and verified, and used solely for the temple's construction and upkeep — not diverted by individuals with access to the counting process — and that land purchased using Trust funds is acquired at fair, arm's-length prices.

Standard charitable-trust accounting norms, including the Trust's own internal audit process using an independent chartered accountancy firm; standard expectations of fair-market, arm's-length pricing in property transactions funded by public donations.

In force from 27 August 2020

Two distinct, verified controversies have touched the Trust. First, in 2021, journalists documented that a 1.2-hectare Ayodhya plot bought by two businessmen for ₹2 crore was resold to the Trust roughly ten minutes later for ₹18.5 crore — witnessed by Ayodhya's BJP mayor, Rishikesh Upadhyay, and Trust member Anil Mishra. A separate plot bought by the mayor's nephew for ₹20 lakh was resold to the Trust for ₹2.5 crore three months later. The mayor called the pricing allegations false, saying the deal followed a pre-existing 2011 agreement between the original parties; no criminal case is known to have been filed over the land pricing itself. Second, in June 2026, a donation cash-counting scandal broke: eight people — including current and former cash-counting staff and a former bank official — were arrested, and roughly ₹80 lakh in cash and foreign currency was recovered from six of them. State Bank of India had reportedly flagged concerns about the counting staff about three months before the arrests. Opposition politicians alleged that over ₹200 crore in donations may have been misappropriated — an allegation not confirmed by the state-appointed Special Investigation Team's findings as reported. Following the SIT's preliminary report, the Trust's General Secretary, Champat Rai, and trustee Anil Mishra — the same Anil Mishra who witnessed the 2021 land deal — resigned on 6 July 2026 'on moral grounds,' and the Trust publicly disclosed total donation receipts of ₹3,264 crore.

As of 6 July 2026

1. 27 Aug 2020Announcement
   Trust announces public donation drive

   Public appeals begin for funds to construct the Ram temple.

2. 18 Mar 2021Milestone
   Land bought for ₹2 crore, resold to the Trust for ₹18.5 crore

   A plot near Ayodhya railway station changes hands twice within about ten minutes, witnessed by the Ayodhya mayor and a Trust member.

3. 19 Jun 2021Status
   Further land purchases reported

   Investigative reporting finds the Ayodhya mayor's nephew bought a separate plot for ₹20 lakh and resold it to the Trust for ₹2.5 crore three months later.

4. 26 Mar 2026Status
   SBI reportedly flags counting-staff concerns

   Reported as occurring roughly three months before the June 2026 arrests; exact date not independently confirmed here.

5. 26 Jun 2026Status
   Eight arrested in donation-counting scandal

   Current and former cash-counting staff and a former bank official arrested; roughly ₹80 lakh in cash and foreign currency recovered from six of them.

6. 6 Jul 2026Status
   Champat Rai and Anil Mishra resign

   Both resign 'on moral grounds' following the SIT's preliminary report; the Trust discloses ₹3,264 crore in total donation receipts.

The 2021 land-pricing controversy did not result in any known criminal case. The 2026 donation-counting scandal is under active investigation by a state-government Special Investigation Team; eight people have been arrested and two senior Trust office-bearers have resigned, but no chargesheet outcome or trial verdict exists yet.

• The SIT's full report into the donation-counting scandal, and any resulting chargesheet, had not been made public in the sources reviewed for this entry.
• No outcome is recorded here for whether the 2021 land-pricing controversy was ever formally investigated by any law-enforcement or tax authority.
• The opposition's claim that over ₹200 crore in donations may be missing has not been independently confirmed and is reported here only as an allegation.