UP opposition slams BJP over Ayodhya Ram temple FIR

Opposition parties in Uttar Pradesh stepped up their attack on the BJP Government on Thursday after an FIR was lodged in connection with the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, with Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Rai questioning the timing and scope of the police action.

Police in Ayodhya registered the FIR on Thursday following a complaint from a member of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, hours after the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) also backed demands for a criminal case in the matter. In a post on X, Yadav alleged that the FIR was preceded by efforts to shield influential persons. “In BJP rule, this is how injustice will be displayed: the tip of the tree will be hanged while the branches will be forgiven,” he said.

“The public is saying that first, under the pretext of the SIT, all evidence would have been cleaned up and it would have been decided which big fish had to be saved and who had to be trapped. Only after that has the FIR been registered,” he added. “It appears the SIT report was prepared in advance and the investigation was conducted accordingly, meaning the conclusion had already been reached beforehand,” the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister added.

Speaking to PTI Videos in Varanasi, Rai said the Congress had raised the issue across Uttar Pradesh and demanded the registration of an FIR in connection with the alleged donation embezzlement.

“Our party raised its voice in every district of the state over the theft and embezzlement of offerings at the Ayodhya Ram temple and demanded that an FIR be registered. We had also submitted copies of a memorandum addressed to the president to officials in every district,” he said.