The case concerns the alleged misappropriation of donations (chadhava) made by devotees at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple.
New Delhi: A Kerala-born IPS officer has been appointed to head the newly reconstituted Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the alleged embezzlement of devotees' offerings at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya, following directions from the Supreme Court.
S Kiran, a 2008-batch Uttar Pradesh cadre IPS officer from Thiruvananthapuram and currently Inspector General (IG) of the Lucknow Range, will lead the three-member SIT. DIG Ayodhya Somen Verma and SSP Ayodhya Dr Gaurav Grover are the other members.
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The Uttar Pradesh government reconstituted the SIT after the Supreme Court, during a hearing on July 13, directed it to entrust the investigation to a team headed by a senior IPS officer.
Kerala officer takes charge of probe
Kiran assumed charge as IG of the Lucknow Range in January after returning from deputation at Interpol headquarters in France. During his career, he has served as Superintendent of Police in Noida, Jhansi, Sultanpur and Pratapgarh, besides spending around 7 years with the CBI in Delhi.
He was awarded the Interpol Medal of Excellence for his service with the international police organisation.
The earlier SIT included Lucknow Commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant and Special Secretary (Finance) Neel Ratan Kumar, among other officials.
Supreme Court sought police-led investigation
The case concerns the alleged misappropriation of donations (chadhava) made by devotees at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohan observed that criminal investigations and the technical examination of theft-related offences are better handled by experienced police officers. It therefore directed the Uttar Pradesh government to constitute a fresh SIT under the leadership of a senior IPS officer.
The apex court also asked the state government to submit a status report on July 27. Sources said the newly formed SIT has already begun investigation and is expected to place its findings before the court.
Probe uncovered alleged irregularities
The previous SIT carried out an extensive investigation, examining CCTV footage, donation registers, cash-handling procedures and financial records. It also questioned several temple employees before submitting a preliminary report that pointed to alleged irregularities in the counting and deposit of temple offerings.
Based on the probe, police arrested eight people. Investigators recovered cash, gold, vehicles, investment-related documents and other assets allegedly purchased using the misappropriated funds. Searches were conducted at multiple locations, while digital evidence and financial transactions were also examined.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is also scheduled to hear petitions seeking an independent CBI investigation into the alleged donation scam. The petitions have been filed by advocates Ajay Kumar Rai and Dinesh Kumar Yadav, and RJD MP Sudhakar Singh.
Published: 27 Jul 2026, 10:33 am IST
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