Claim
The roughly ₹80 lakh detailed by the anchor was actually recovered by Champat Rai himself on June 6 and kept locked up with him before police later took the amount on record.
“असल में जिस ₹80 लाख की डिटेल्स मैंने आपके साथ शेयर की है, यह रकम तो चंपत राय ने 6 जून को ही रिकवर कर ली थी। इससे पहले यह पैसा चंपत राय के पास ताले में बंद करके रखा गया था।”▶ Watch source segment
Rationale
Independent reporting as of the broadcast date supports only fragments of the claim: some cash (about ₹20 lakh tied to one accused) was recovered around June 5 in an episode involving trust representatives before the June 25 FIR, and cash from one accused was reportedly kept locked by trust member Krishna Mohan before formal seizure. But police records and wire reports attribute the full ₹79.85 lakh recovery to police searches of multiple accused's premises in late June, itemized per accused, and no independent source corroborates that Champat Rai himself recovered the entire ~₹80 lakh on June 6 and kept it locked with him. The anchor generalizes a contested partial episode into the whole recovery, misattributes the custody, and shifts the date. No dedicated fact-check by AltNews, BOOM, Factly, Newschecker or PIB was found, and the SIT probe into the recovery was ongoing, so some uncertainty remains.
Evidence
- https://theprint.in/india/ram-temple-donation-theft-case-ayodhya-police-record-champat-rais-statement/2974013/ PTI/ThePrint reports the ~₹80 lakh (₹79.85 lakh) was recovered by Ayodhya police from six of the eight accused during the investigation after the June 25 FIR — not held as a single sum by Champat Rai. ✗ unreachable · HTTP 403
- https://www.outlookindia.com/national/ram-temple-donation-theft-cctv-footage-rs-80-lakh-recovery-and-hiring-process-under-probe Reports police recovered nearly ₹80 lakh 'during searches linked to the accused' at premises of Anukalp Mishra, Luvkush Mishra, Avinash Shukla and Manish Yadav; the recovery process itself is under SIT probe. ✓ reachable · archived
- https://www.freepressjournal.in/india/ram-temple-donation-theft-20-lakh-recovery-raises-questions-over-trusts-oversight Corroborates only a partial pre-FIR recovery: ~₹20 lakh linked to accused Avinash Shukla around June 5, with witness accounts of trust-linked persons removing bags before formal seizure; cash from one accused was reportedly kept in trust member Krishna Mohan's locker (not Champat Rai's) before police seized it. ✓ reachable · archived
- https://www.aajtak.in/india/news/story/ram-mandir-donation-theft-champat-rai-statement-police-investigation-ntcpvp-rpti-2589688-2026-06-29 Reports that on June 5 (not June 6) trust representatives accompanied a police team to accused Avinash Shukla on Champat Rai's directions and cash was recovered — a partial, police-accompanied recovery, not Champat Rai alone recovering the full amount. ✓ reachable · archived
- https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/india/opinion-the-full-story-of-loot-in-ram-mandir-who-did-it-how-much-was-looted-where-has-the-jewellery-gone-2026-07-01-1046791 India TV's own write-up of the same Aaj Ki Baat episode, showing the anchor's claim that Champat Rai personally raided counting staff homes and recovered ~₹80 lakh — the claim under review, not independent corroboration. ✓ reachable · archived