Ram temple donation row: VHP asks SIT to verify claims made by Opposition leaders

The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Saturday (July 4, 2026) wrote to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the alleged theft of offerings at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya, urging it to record the statements of several Opposition leaders who have publicly alleged large-scale financial irregularities at the temple to probe their allegations.

The Opposition leaders named in the VHP’s letter include Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Arvind Kejriwal, Sanjay Singh and Ram Gopal Yadav.

The VHP has said that the allegations made by these leaders will make people believe that they are “acquainted with the facts and circumstances of the case”.

In its letter, the VHP said that for a “comprehensive and impartial investigation”, it is necessary to record the statements of these Opposition leaders under applicable provisions of law, adding that recording their statements will clarify “the factual basis of allegations made by them”, “the in their possession supporting such allegations”.

It added that their statements will further help the investigative agencies to probe the allegations on Ram Temple donation theft, while also urging the SIT to take actions as per law against Opposition leaders, if any allegations were made without any supporting basis.

Speaking to journalists in Kerala’s Wayanad, Congress general secretary and Lok Sabha member Priyanka Gandhi Vadra described the allegations on Ram Temple donation theft, as “tragic” and “shameful”, saying people from across the country had contributed to the temple out of faith. “People from all over the country, those who believe and those who have faith, gave donations, and now those donations have been stolen. It is tragic, it is shameful, and the government needs to inquire into what has happened, how it has happened, and why it has happened,” she said.