India probe into stolen donations tests trust in temple finances

NEW DELHI: A probe into donations allegedly siphoned off at India’s grand Ram temple has renewed scrutiny of how religious sites manage vast amounts of cash and gold entrusted to them by devotees.

Police launched an investigation in June and arrested eight people responsible for handling donations at the revered Hindu shrine in the northern city of Ayodhya.

Authorities have not disclosed the amount allegedly stolen, but media reports say it could amount to 30 million rupees ($314,000).

Ashok Prasad Kushwaha, an auto-rickshaw driver in Delhi who has visited the Ram temple three times in two years, said donations are acts of faith made even by people with modest incomes.

“When we donate, we believe the money is going for God’s work,” he said.

“Now if that hard-earned money gets stolen from a place like a temple, it feels like personal loss.”

The case is the latest in a series of scandals involving donations at major pilgrimage sites, including the Badrinath shrine and Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, one of the world’s richest temple trusts with assets estimated at $31 billion.

With some religious institutions managing vast sums of money and operating on a scale comparable to major corporations, ensuring transparency is a persistent challenge.

“The core systemic problem is the lack of transparency and accountability,” said Rahul Easwar, a Hindu activist and grandson of a former chief priest of Kerala state’s Sabarimala temple.