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Last June, the police began an investigation into the thefts and arrested 8 people responsible for managing the offerings or donations at this holy shrine for Hindus in the northern city of Ayodhya.
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An investigation into donations embezzled from India's grand Ram temple has brought to light how religious sites manage vast sums of cash and gold donated by Hindu temple visitors.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened the Ram Temple in 2024, making it one of the most prominent religious sites in India, attracting an average of 90,000 visitors daily.
Committing violations is considered a very sensitive matter given the importance of the temple, as it is based on the ruins of the Babri Mosque, which was stormed by thousands of Hindu extremists - including some prominent names and leaders of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party - on December 22, 1992, demolished it, and then built the Ram Temple on its ruins.
According to Indian consulting firm IMARC, the religious and spiritual services market in India was worth more than $71 billion in 2025, and is expected to reach more than $135 billion by 2034.
Hindus claim that “God Ram was born” there more than 7,000 years ago, and that the Babri Mosque was built over his birthplace by a Muslim emperor in the 16th century.
Legal experts say oversight varies widely across India because religious institutions operate under multiple laws and tax regimes.
Iswar asserts that “large religious institutions need more stringent financial controls, which include issuing mandatory receipts, digital accounting systems, monitoring donation operations via surveillance cameras, and independent supervision.”
