Raj Thackeray Alleges Rs 18 Crore Annual Theft at Maharashtra's Siddhivinayak Temple, Trust Rejects Claim

Raj Thackeray has alleged that Rs 18 crore in donations was siphoned off every year from Maharashtra's Siddhivinayak Temple, one of India's richest and most visited shrines, and claimed Rs 1,400 crore was stolen from donations at the Ayodhya Ram Temple. The MNS chief urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address alleged corruption in religious institutions.

Addressing an MNS student wing event on Saturday, Thackeray said frustrated youths visit temples seeking peace, but "even temples are not safe these days." Referring to a letter signed by eight trustees to Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, he said employees handling hundi (donation box) collections were caught stealing cash. He claimed weekly donations rose from below Rs 50 lakh to around Rs 1.5 crore after stricter monitoring, alleging, "Every year, Rs 18 crore was being stolen." However, the figure has not been confirmed by any official audit or police investigation and remains Thackeray's estimate based on the rise in collections.

The donation theft case surfaced earlier this year after temple authorities allegedly detected irregularities through CCTV surveillance during cash counting. The trust approached Mumbai Police after footage allegedly showed staff removing cash, with investigators initially probing claims that around Rs 10,000 was being stolen daily. The temple is managed by a government appointed trust under the Maharashtra government.

Responding, Siddhivinayak Temple Trust chairman Sada Sarvankar said nine employees had already been arrested and cases were registered wherever required. Rejecting Thackeray's allegation, he said tighter supervision, administrative reforms and improved collection systems increased the temple's annual income from Rs 114 crore to Rs 182 crore in two years. "If Rs 18 crore had really been stolen every year, our income could not have increased this much," he said.

The issue has also become political. Earlier, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde accused the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi government of failing to act on the Siddhivinayak case, while former trust chairman Aadesh Bandekar denied the allegations and said any wrongdoing should be investigated.

Thackeray also referred to the ongoing Ayodhya Ram Temple donation theft case, where multiple accused have been arrested and an SIT is probing alleged irregularities in cash counting, CCTV footage and supervision. No fresh FIR or investigation has been announced following Thackeray's latest remarks, and neither the Prime Minister's Office nor the Maharashtra government had responded by Sunday evening.