Claim
Champat Rai received evidence of theft from temple offerings on June 4, and on June 5 he personally went to the homes of people seen on CCTV putting bundles of currency notes into their pockets.
“मैंने आपको पिछले हफ्ते बताया था कि चंपत राय को 4 जून को चढ़ावे में चोरी के सबूत मिले थे। इसके बाद 5 जून को चंपत राय खुद उन लोगों के घर पहुंच गए जो सीसीटीवी कैमरों में नोटों की गड्डियां जेबों में रखते दिखाई दिए थे।”▶ Watch source segment
Rationale
Multiple independent Indian outlets corroborate the core timeline: Champat Rai first received evidence/information of the offerings theft on June 4, and on June 5 — after CCTV showed counting staff pocketing bundles of notes — home visits and recoveries of roughly Rs 58-80 lakh took place from the accused. India TV's own reporting states Rai personally took private guards to the staff's homes; a few reports frame it as trust representatives acting on his instruction alongside police, a minor nuance that slightly qualifies the word 'personally.' No fact-checker has disputed the claim, and the specific June 4/June 5 dates and CCTV-pocketing detail are independently confirmed, so the claim is substantially accurate.
Evidence
- https://www.tv9hindi.com/india/ram-mandir-donation-theft-58-lakh-recovered-as-early-as-june-5-champat-rai-anil-mishra-3834862.html Reports that Champat Rai first learned of the alleged donation tampering on June 4, and that on June 5, on his instruction, trust representatives went with police to accused Avinash Shukla's premises and roughly Rs 58 lakh cash was recovered from accused homes. ✓ reachable · archived
- https://www.thejbt.com/india/uttar-pradesh/champat-rai-ram-mandir-trust-knew-about-theft-before-fir-5th-june-cctv-footage-reveals-another-big-twist-news-313612 Confirms June 5 CCTV footage showed counting staff pocketing note bundles, and that the trust (under Champat Rai) knew of the theft and acted on/around June 5, well before the June 25 FIR. ✓ 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 Rajat Sharma's own India TV account: after viewing CCTV of staff stuffing note bundles into pockets, Champat Rai took private security guards to the counting staff's homes and recovered nearly Rs 80 lakh — corroborating the personal home visits in the first week of June. ✓ reachable · archived
- https://www.aajtak.in/india/news/story/ram-mandir-donation-theft-investigation-fund-recovery-champat-rai-statement-ntcpvp-rpti-2589703-2026-06-29 AajTak report (dated June 29, the broadcast date) on the recovery pattern and Champat Rai's role, consistent with early-June discovery and home-recovery of stolen offerings. ✓ reachable · archived