The controversy surrounding the theft of offerings by some staff members of the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple at Ayodhya disturbed every right-thinking person in the country. Temples are sacred spaces and offerings are not just donations but a personal bond between the deity and the devotee. Ayodhya has a special place in the hearts of crores of Indians, given the 500-year-long struggle that preceded its restoration. That intense emotional attachment to the Ram Temple, manifested in the grand celebrations witnessed during the consecration ceremony in January 2024, led to great anguish over the news of theft.

There is another reason behind the public’s disquiet. The temple is being managed by persons connected with the Sangh Parivar, which enjoys an unblemished record of integrity, probity and discipline. Many offerings in the form of cash and kind are made at Ayodhya because of the trust that people repose in the Sangh Parivar. It is the breakdown of that trust that compounded the resentment of the people.

The Parivar leadership understood the severity of public resentment. Dattatreya Hosabale, the general........

© Indian Express