The Supreme Court on Monday refused to urgently hear a petition seeking an investigation into the alleged embezzlement of donations received by the Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust for the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.

The petitioner requested an immediate hearing, saying the allegations were serious and needed urgent attention. However, the Bench questioned the urgency of the matter and asked, 'Why the haste?'

The petitioner replied that the way the State was handling the issue had raised doubts. The court, however, did not agree to hear the matter during the ongoing partial working days.

Instead, it directed that the petition be listed after the Supreme Court reopens for regular hearings.

The petition seeks an investigation into the alleged misuse of temple donations. It also asks the Centre, the Uttar Pradesh government and the Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust to take steps to protect the interests of devotees and donors.

It says that even if the allegations are eventually found to be untrue, the reports have caused concern among devotees and people who supported the Ram Mandir movement.

A separate petition raising similar allegations has also been filed by advocate Narendra Kumar Goswami.

The case stems from an FIR registered on June 25 over the alleged embezzlement of donations received by the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.

Acting on the Uttar Pradesh government's direction, police booked several accused, including Anukalp Mishra, Lavkush Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Tinnu Yadav and Manish Yadav.

The FIR followed allegations by former Samajwadi Party MLA Pawan Pandey, who claimed that between ₹7 crore and ₹7.5 crore in temple donations had been misappropriated. The allegations are currently under investigation.