Lucknow, June 14 -- Amid the controversy over the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram temple, the state government on Saturday constituted a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the issue on the request of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. The SIT members are Lucknow divisional commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant, inspector general of police (Lucknow range) Kiran S and special secretary (Finance) Neel Ratan. The SIT will conduct a thorough inquiry into the entire matter and submit its report to the government. "It is noteworthy that, taking seriously the rumours being spread on social media regarding donation boxes at the Teerth Kshetra in Ayodhya, the Trust had requested chief minister Yogi Adityanath to constitute a Special Investigation Team for an impartial inquiry into the matter," the state government said in a press statement issued on Saturday. "A detailed investigation is necessary to stop the rumours and bring out the truth," according to the Trust. The Trust stated that this is a deep conspiracy to damage the image of the Teerth Kshetra and hurt the faith of millions of devotees, and thus it is essential to expose it. As the controversy deepened and Rs 10 lakh was recovered from a cash-counting employee's residence in Ayodhya on Friday, the state government took the decision to constitute the SIT. The controversy got political traction when Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav raised it through a post on X on June 7. In his post, he expressed concern over allegations of irregularities in donations worth crores and termed the situation for the temple trust "shameful". Responding to the issue the same day, Trust general secretary Champat Rai had said that an internal audit of the trust is conducted from time to time. The audit work continues for several days and the same exercise is currently underway, Rai said, adding that nothing notable had come to light thus far. "Only an impartial probe by the SIT could bring to justice those involved in the scam. A probe by the Trust will face several questions," said a Trust member. Earlier, on Friday, Uttar Pradesh agriculture minister Surya Pratap Shahi, who is the minister in charge of Ayodhya district, said, "If the Trust expects any assistance or action from the government, the government will consider it." Rs 10 lakh recovered Meanwhile, around Rs 10 lakh was recovered from the residence of Luv Kush Mishra, a cash-counting employee engaged by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. A six-member team, including two police personnel and four others, reached Mishra's residence in Rudauli block on Friday. Bacchu Lal, father of the accused, has admitted that people from the Trust had arrived at his residence and around Rs 10 lakh was recovered. According to Bacchu Lal, some cash was recovered from an almirah in the house while the remaining was recovered from a sack carrying cow dung cakes. Around four-five months ago, Luv Kush got the job at the Ram temple. However, the Trust has not lodged an FIR and no arrest has been made. Another suspect in the scam is a long-time associate of a senior office bearer of the Trust. Nripendra Misra, chairman of Ram Mandir Construction Committee, reached Ayodhya on Saturday for a two-day meeting of the temple construction committee. When asked about the donation issue and what would be discussed in the meeting, Misra said: "This is a construction committee meeting, I only look after construction (work of Ram Mandir)." The meeting will continue till Sunday. This is Misra's second visit to Ayodhya in less than a week. He was in Ayodhya on June 8-9 when the controversy broke out. In prominent temples, audits are done by insiders or the government. At the Shirdi Saibaba Temple, the Maharashtra government's 'Local Fund Audit' department audits offerings. At the Ram temple, the private company Tata Consultancy Services audits the amounts received as offerings. How counting works at Ram temple Bank staff count offerings in the presence of Trust members and under CCTV surveillance. The donation amount is entered in a register. It is then kept in a locker inside the Ram temple premises. The money is deposited in the bank the next day. The Trust's main account is with the State Bank of India at Ayodhya Dham. Information on offerings is shared only in Trust meetings. The last update was in December 2025....