Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Saturday alleged that donations of Rs 18 crore were being siphoned off every year at Mumbai's famous Siddhivinayak Temple. He also claimed that Rs 1,400 crore had been stolen from the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
Speaking at an event organised by the MNS student wing, Thackeray said even places of worship were no longer immune to corruption and called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address the issue.
"Frustrated youths visit temples, but even temples are not safe from corruption, he said.Some employees who stole money from the donation box at the Siddhivinayak Temple were caught due to the alertness of the trustees," Thackeray said.
Thackeray's remarks come amid an ongoing investigation into the alleged theft of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, in which multiple accused have been arrested.
Thackeray said employees at the Siddhivinayak Temple had allegedly been stealing money from donation boxes and were caught due to the vigilance of the temple trustees.
Reading from a letter purportedly written by eight trustees to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, he claimed that the temple's weekly donation collections had increased significantly after the alleged theft came to light.
"The temple's weekly earnings from donations were less than Rs 50 lakh before this theft was caught, and afterwards the collection rose to Rs 1.5 crore," he said.
Based on those figures, Thackeray alleged that around Rs 18 crore had been siphoned off every year.
He also claimed that Rs 1,400 crore had been stolen from the Ram Temple in Ayodhya and urged the Prime Minister to respond to the allegations.
Responding to the allegations, Siddhivinayak Temple Trust chairman and Shiv Sena leader Sada Sarvankar said nine employees had been arrested in connection with the alleged theft, PTI reported.
"We have filed cases wherever required," Sarvankar told reporters.
He added that the increase in donations was the result of measures taken by the trust to improve temple administration.
According to Sarvankar, the temple's annual income has increased from Rs 114 crore two years ago to Rs 182 crore.
