Uproar in Chhattisgarh Assembly over Ram Temple donation theft issue

The Chhattisgarh Assembly witnessed an uproar on Monday, July 13, 2026, after the Opposition Congress sought debate on the alleged theft of donations from the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

While opposition MPs said the issue was related to the faith of many people in the country, including people from Chhattisgarh who donated money to the temple, Treasury ministers said the issue was beyond the scope of Parliament’s business.

Leader of Opposition Charan Das Mahant raised the issue at the beginning of Zero Hour, informing the House that he had moved an adjournment motion to discuss the alleged theft of Ram Mandir donations.

“People donated their hard-earned money to the Ram Temple. Their faith and trust was betrayed,” Mr. Mahant said.

Even while Mr. Mahant was speaking, senior BJP MLA and former Minister Ajay Chandrakar objected, stating that although it was a matter of faith, it was not an issue to be discussed in the Assembly.

The Congress members made the issue about the State by saying that people from the State also contributed to the construction of the Temple.

The Leader of Opposition also argued that the Parliament passed a resolution expressing gratitude for the consecration of the Temple in Ayodhya in 2024 and discussed the issue in the Parliament. He was joined by former Chief Minister and Congress MLA Bhupesh Baghel, who alleged that donations to the temple were looted, prompting an objection from Mr. Chandrakar. The exchange was soon followed by slogans from members of both sides.

Speaker Raman Singh said he received notices from Congress legislators seeking discussion on the issue but rejected them as the issue was not related to Chhattisgarh.

Despite the Speaker’s decision, Congress MLAs continued to demand debate and forced the Speaker to adjourn the House for five minutes.

When Parliament reconvened, the Opposition raised the issue again and put up posters claiming donations had been stolen. Amid the ongoing turmoil, the Speaker adjourned the House for the day and listed the remaining business for Tuesday.

Earlier, on the opening day of the five-day Monsoon session, members including Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, Speaker Mr. Singh and Mr. Mahant paid tributes to Pandvani representative Teejan Bai, who passed away on July 5.