New Delhi

The Congress on Tuesday intensified its attack on the Centre over the alleged misappropriation of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of maintaining a "deafening silence" on the issue and describing it as an affront to the faith of millions of devotees.

The party also alleged that Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajai Rai was detained by police when he reached Ayodhya ahead of a planned visit by a Congress delegation to offer prayers at the Ram temple.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the Prime Minister’s silence over the alleged financial irregularities amounted to a direct blow to the religious sentiments of crores of Indians.

He alleged that the Centre had constituted the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust without any transparent selection process or public consultation and appointed members associated with the RSS to the body. Ramesh also criticised the decision to keep the trust outside the purview of the Right to Information Act, urging the Prime Minister to respond to the allegations.

The remarks came after Ajai Rai claimed on social media that he was taken into custody shortly after arriving in Ayodhya.

According to Rai, the Congress delegation was scheduled to visit the temple on June 30 to seek the blessings of Lord Ram, but he was allegedly detained by police at his hotel before the programme could begin.

The Congress has demanded that the alleged irregularities be investigated under the supervision of the Supreme Court and has called for the dissolution of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.

The controversy has gathered momentum after the Faizabad Bar Association announced that none of its members would represent the eight accused arrested in connection with the alleged embezzlement of temple donations. The association has also sought a CBI investigation into the matter.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court declined an urgent hearing on a petition related to the alleged donation scam. A bench comprising Justices M M Sundresh and Sheel Nagu said the matter would be taken up after the court resumes following the summer vacation on July 13.

Opposition parties have stepped up criticism of the BJP, which has consistently projected the construction of the Ram temple as one of its flagship achievements. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav urged what he termed "true Sanatanis" to neither support the BJP nor seek election tickets from the party, alleging it had betrayed Lord Ram.

The BJP, however, defended the government's response, saying the legal action against the accused reflected the commitment to ensuring accountability. The party described the decision of lawyers to boycott the accused as a strong message from society and asserted that both legal proceedings and social condemnation were underway.

The BJP also cited Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s assurance that those found guilty would face strict punishment and that justice would be delivered without delay.

The Uttar Pradesh government had constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) on June 13 following a request from the temple trust after allegations of financial irregularities surfaced.

Based on the SIT's findings, eight individuals—Avinash Shukla, Anukalp Mishra, Lav Kush Mishra, Manish Kumar Yadav, Karunesh Pandey, Ram Shankar Mishra, Subhash Srivastava and Ramashankar alias Tinnu Yadav—were arrested.

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Opposition leaders have alleged that only lower-level functionaries have been arrested while those allegedly responsible at higher levels have escaped scrutiny.