Mumbai

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Thursday invited Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to participate in the 'Ram Raksha Andolan' organised by his party on July 18 in Nagpur against the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

Sena (UBT) head and former state CM Uddhav Thackeray had earlier said that he would take part in the Ram Raksha Andolan organised by the party in Nagpur, the hometown of CM Fadnavis, on Saturday.

In a letter to Fadnavis, Raut wrote that the CM has often said he had participated in the movement to "liberate" the Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya.

"Today, crimes such as theft, robbery, and fraud are allegedly taking place in this very Ram Temple, and it is claimed that hundreds of crores of rupees have been misappropriated," the Sen (UBT) leader said in the letter, which he posted on his Facebook page.

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has itself expressed "grief" over the reported thefts in Ayodhya, the Rajya Sabha member stated.

"To raise public awareness about the alleged looting associated with the Ram Temple, the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) has launched the 'Ram Raksha' campaign. Understand that 'Ram Raksha' means 'the protection of Lord Ram'," Raut said, inviting Fadnavis to take part in the agitation.

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The alleged embezzlement of Ram temple donations came to light last month, following which the Uttar Pradesh government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) on June 13 to probe the allegations.

Following the submission of the preliminary SIT report on June 23, an FIR was registered on June 25 and eight accused were arrested.