Ayodhya (UP): A special court in Ayodhya on Tuesday rejected the bail applications of three more accused arrested in connection with the alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple here, their lawyer said.
The court had on Monday rejected the bail applications of three other accused - Avinash Shukla, Manish Kumar Yadav and Ram Shankar Mishra.
"The bail applications of Anukalp Mishra, Lav Kush Mishra and Karunesh Pandey were taken up by Special Judge Rajat Verma of the Anti-Corruption Court and rejected," advocate Kul Shekhar Singh, who represents the accused, told PTI.
Singh said he once again argued that provisions relating to corruption and criminal breach of trust by a public servant were not applicable to the accused as they were not government employees.
"If these provisions were removed, the remaining offences carried a maximum punishment of seven years and the accused could be granted bail in the absence of special circumstances," he said.
The lawyer also argued that the police had not yet filed the charge sheet in the case. The court, however, rejected the bail pleas after hearing the arguments, he said.
Singh said he had argued on the same lines for the bail of the accused on Monday also.
The bail application of the remaining two accused -- Subhash Srivastava and Ramashankar alias Tinnu Yadav -- is scheduled to be taken up on Wednesday, Singh said.
The case relates to allegations of embezzlement and theft of cash and valuables offered by devotees at the Ram temple. Eight people were arrested after an FIR was registered on June 25 following a preliminary report by a state government-constituted Special Investigation Team (SIT).
Most of the accused were bank employees deployed for counting cash donations at the temple. Subhash Srivastava was in charge of the donation-counting process, while Ramashankar alias Tinnu Yadav worked as a driver and was a close aide of former Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust general secretary Champat Rai.
The donation theft allegations had triggered a wider controversy over the functioning and oversight of the trust. The trust subsequently accepted the resignations of Rai and trustee Anil The prosecution has said investigators recovered Rs 79.85 lakh in connection with the case. The investigation has since progressed, with the Uttar Pradesh government informing the Supreme Court that the SIT would file its charge sheet by September 25.Mishra amid the controversy.
