Champat Rai, the brother of VHP leader and former Ram Temple Trust General Secretary Champat Rai, defended him on Sunday against allegations of misappropriating donations intended for the Ram temple. He stated that Rai had dedicated his personal life and professional career to the Ram temple movement and the service of the nation.
His remarks came after allegations surfaced regarding Rai’s alleged involvement in a large-scale donation embezzlement case, which led to his resignation as the general secretary of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust on Monday.
Earlier, the Faizabad Bar Association demanded that Champat Rai, Anil Mishra, and Gopal Rao—who are associated with the temple’s administration but are not named in the FIR—leave Ayodhya. The association warned that if they failed to do so within three days, lawyers would blockade the city and prevent anyone from entering.
Speaking to PTI, Rai’s brother Sunil Bansal, who lives in Nagina in Uttar Pradesh’s Bijnor district, said that Rai had devoted his entire life to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Ram temple movement, and national service. According to Bansal, Rai worked as a teacher in Rohtak during 1970–71 before becoming a physics lecturer at RSM Degree College in Dhampur in 1972.
Bansal further said that during the Emergency, police attempted to arrest Rai while he was teaching, after which he voluntarily surrendered at the local police station. He added that Rai left his teaching position in 1980–81 to become a full-time RSS worker. Rejecting the allegations, Bansal described them as politically motivated and emphasized that his brother had sacrificed everything for the RSS, the Ram temple movement, and the nation.
Meanwhile, the Bar Association announced that it would seek the registration of an FIR against Champat Rai, Gopal Rao, and Anil Mishra under Section 156(3) of the BNSS, which empowers a magistrate to order a police investigation into a cognisable offence when no action has been taken on a complaint.
These developments unfolded as Rai’s brother publicly defended his reputation while lawyers intensified their demands for action over the alleged misuse of temple donations.
