New Delhi: News reports citing “sources” say that the police “questioned” trust general secretary and senior Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) functionary, Champat Rai on Monday (June 29), also recording a statement. Anil Mishra, the other luminary under fire, a trustee, who has also submitted his resignation will be questioned “if required” the police are reported to have said.What compounded the problems further for those close to the RSS leadership is the fact that the State Bank of India (SBI) had allegedly flagged the theft three months ago, NDTV reported citing sources.Champat Rai (extreme left) and other inviting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Ram Mandi Pran Pratishtha event. Photo: Facebook/Champat Rai.Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister, Akhilesh Yadav declared that if the party was to win the next assembly elections, they would ensure a Siyaram Dham, paying homage to both Lord Ram and Sita at Ayodhya. Yadav said in Prayagraj that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was using religion as a cover. He said, “An entire business is being run under the guise of Sanatan Dharma,” adding that for the BJP, the “priority is not religion, but money. For them it is not ‘Nation First’, but ‘Donation First’.” Referring to the now public allegations about funds mismanagement and embezzlement of funds at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, “who would have imagined such a big betrayal of faith?”In a bid to deflect attention from the rising calls for accountability over the donations scam that has emerged in the handling of the donations for the Lord Ram at Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Adityanath spoke of “liberation” of the Mathura shrine. Speaking at a public rally at Hathras, in a reference to Yadav’s charges, Adityanath said, “What religious city will you make? Look at your own history.”Also read: Special | ‘Show Us Evidence of Money in Cow Dung’: Ram Temple Funds Scam Accused Lavkush’s Family Is DefiantNews agencies reported on Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray accusing the BJP of “commercialising” the Ram temple and “betraying” the ideology of Hindutva. Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) leader Pinarayi Vijayan called for a Supreme Court monitored probe into the case. The Congress on June 26 had called for the top court to monitor the probe. General Secretary K.C. Venugopal said, “The BJP on one hand wants to control registered NGOs through draconian FCRA rules, while completely unregistered entities like the RSS are free to loot and plunder the temples.”Meanwhile, there are reports, like in The Telegraph today about senior Sangh leaders being uneasy about Adityanath’s loud and aggressive proclamations in the light of these allegations emerging. The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust formed at the back of a Supreme Court order in 2019, is at the centre of the controversy. It is dominated by RSS and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leaders, most of them personally approved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.Also read: God’s Money: When Will Modi-Shah Break Their ‘Maun’ On the Big Loot In Ayodhya?“Adityanath seems to have seized upon the donations scandal to sharpen his image as a clean and uncompromising Hindutva leader,” a senior BJP leader in Delhi told the newspaper. “He is not merely looking at a third term in Uttar Pradesh but trying to position himself as Modi’s natural political heir.”The unease stems from the attacks being directly hurled at Champat Rai, the general secretary of the trust, who is said to have offered to resign. The trust is yet to accept his resignation.Anil Mishra and his wife Usha Mishra (extreme left) with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and others during the Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha event. Photo: Screengrab from video on X/PMO India.Neither Rai nor Mishra is an ordinary Sangh functionary. Rai is an RSS veteran, was “one of the most recognisable faces of the Ram temple movement and is currently the VHP’s international vice-president.” Politically and functionally too, he would be privy to politics as well as financial matters concerning the VHP.Trustee Mishra, the other name under fire, is also deeply connected with the Sangh. Before the consecration of the Ram idol by Prime Minister Modi himself in a controversial move on January 22, 2024, Mishra and his wife Usha Mishra had performed the roles of Pradhan Yajman, which involved elaborate and well-publicised religious rituals for days before the event.“The couple were seen alongside Modi and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat during the ceremony,” notes The Telegraph.