The Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Ayodhya: A former priest of a temple in Ayodhya was booked on Friday for allegedly selling the temple's land illegally to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, police said.
Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust manages the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
The accused, Rama Kant Pathak, illegally sold 21,198.8 square feet of Anand Bhawan Temple's land adjacent to the Ram Janmabhoomi temple complex to the trust for Rs 6 crore on September 21, 2024, according to a complaint filed at Kotwali police station in Faizabad.
The sale deed contained false information, it said.
The complaint further stated that the Anand Bhawan Temple committee is registered with the sub-registrar's office, which explicitly states that no individual has the authority to transfer or sell temple property.
It also revealed that Rama Kant Pathak was removed from his priestly duties in 2016 after his actions became suspicious over time.
When the committee came to know about the matter, they tried to file a case at the local police station a few months after the sale of the property. However, no action was taken then.
Consequently, the complainant, Anand Prakash Pathak, a member of the temple's management committee, approached a court that ordered the registration of the case.
An investigation is underway in the matter and further action will be taken accordingly, SHO Ashwini Pandey said.