The Congress has demanded a Supreme Court-monitored inquiry by a Special Investigation Team into the alleged embezzlement of donations made to the Ram temple in Ayodhya. Congress leader Pramod Tiwari described the Special Investigation Team currently looking into the case as a “sham” and alleged that the officer leading the investigation was himself facing a criminal inquiry. Tiwari accused former Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust General Secretary Champat Rai of orchestrating the alleged irregularities and institutionalising the “theft”. The report alleged that offerings were stolen during the counting process, with staff routinely hiding cash on their bodies and walking out with it, as systems meant to stop this were not enforced. It also flagged serious lapses by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust and the State Bank of India, the banker to the trust.