Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday slammed the Uttar Pradesh government over the constitution of a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe allegations concerning donations to the Ram Janmabhoomi temple, alleging corruption and questioning the role of officials leading the inquiry.
Addressing a press conference, Yadav said the State government was prioritising the formation of SITs instead of creating employment opportunities.
“In a state where IITs should have been built to create jobs and employment opportunities, SITs are being formed instead. So much corruption is taking place. The 'double engine' is like a double tank of corruption,” Yadav said.
He also questioned the impartiality of the proposed inquiry, arguing that officials would be investigating temple functionaries while remaining outside scrutiny themselves.
“They are saying that officials will investigate our saints, sages, priests and those who perform worship in temples. But tell me, who will conduct an SIT investigation into these officials themselves? These officials should also be subjected to an SIT inquiry,” he said.
Yadav’s remarks come amid allegations of irregularities in donations made to the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
On June 14, the Uttar Pradesh government constituted a three-member SIT to investigate the alleged irregularities in offerings made at the Ram Mandir, following a request from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir Trust.
The SIT comprises Vijay Vishwas Pant, IAS, Divisional Commissioner, Lucknow; Kiran S, IPS, Inspector General (Range); and Neel Ratan, Special Secretary, Finance. The panel has been directed to submit its preliminary and final reports at the earliest.
Earlier, on June 12, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut held the BJP governments at the Centre and in Uttar Pradesh responsible for the alleged misappropriation of Rs 7 crore from offerings made at the Ayodhya Ram Temple.
The controversy follows allegations by Samajwadi Party leader Pawan Pandey, former Ayodhya MLA, who claimed that at least Rs 7 crore in temple donations had been misappropriated.
(With inputs from PTI )
