Ram temple donation row: SC to resume hearing on Monday, UP's stand on SIT reconstitution likely

New Delhi, July 26 (AHN) The Supreme Court is slated to hear on Monday a batch of petitions seeking a court-monitored probe into the alleged financial irregularities in the handling of donations and offerings received by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.

As per the causelist uploaded on the apex court's official website, the batch of matters is listed before a bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana.

The petitions include a writ petition filed by advocate Narendra Kumar Goswami, a criminal writ petition filed by petitioner-in-person Ajay Kumar Rai, a separate plea moved by Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Sudhakar Singh, and another petition filed by Hindu Dharma Parishad.

All four matters are scheduled to be taken up together.

At the previous hearing on July 20, the CJI Surya Kant-led bench had asked the Uttar Pradesh government to consider reconstituting the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the alleged irregularities, saying that the investigation should be led by a senior IPS officer and taken to its "logical conclusion".

"The investigation must be fair and taken to its logical conclusion," the apex court had said while cautioning against politicising the issue and adding that "courts are not a place for politics".

During the hearing, Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre and the Uttar Pradesh government, had told the apex court that a status report had been filed in a sealed cover in compliance with its earlier directions.

"The investigation is going on. Eight persons have been arrested. I cannot divulge much at this stage," SG Mehta had said.

Clarifying the role of the earlier SIT, the Solicitor General had told the CJI Kant-led bench that it was constituted only to ascertain the veracity of the allegations and was not itself carrying out the criminal investigation.

He had said the police were currently conducting the investigation under the supervision of the Superintendent of Police.

However, the apex court said that the earlier SIT comprised senior officers, including two IAS officers and a senior IPS officer, and suggested that the ongoing investigation be entrusted to a reconstituted SIT led by the senior IPS officer already familiar with the matter.

"Let there be an SIT for the ongoing investigation. It can be led by this officer because he has knowledge of the matter. Speak to the government and let the SIT be reconstituted. Whatever additional directions are required, we will do that," the CJI Kant-led bench had said.

During the hearing, senior advocate Devadatt Kamat, appearing for one of the petitioners, had urged the apex court to direct preservation of all records relating to donations collected during the construction of the Ram temple and suggested that such records be uploaded on the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust's website so that donors could verify whether their contributions had reached the temple.

The apex court had said that while uploading everything online might not be practical, there should be properly maintained records wherever receipts had been issued.

SG Mehta had assured the court that all relevant records, including CCTV footage and digital evidence, were being preserved.

Earlier, on July 13, the Supreme Court had issued notice in the batch of petitions and directed the SIT constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government to submit a detailed status report, including particulars of its composition.

The status report was subsequently filed before the apex court in a sealed cover.

The petitions seek a court-monitored investigation into the alleged financial irregularities in the handling of donations and offerings received by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.

Advocate Narendra Kumar Goswami's plea seeks preservation of records and evidence relating to donations made at the Ram Janmabhoomi temple and greater transparency in the administration of temple offerings.

In a separate petition, RJD MP Sudhakar Singh has sought transfer of the ongoing investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) under the direct monitoring of the Supreme Court.

His plea also seeks a temporary court-monitored oversight committee, preservation of financial records, a comprehensive forensic audit, and publication of audited financial statements and donation logs on the Trust's official website.