'Displayed For Months, Then Removed': Ex Bureaucrat To NDTV On His Gift To Ram Temple

The former Home Secretary said that the gold-plated 'Ramcharitmanas' was not only a gift, but it was the end result of a long spiritual journey that his family underwent.

05 Jul 2026, 03:50 · www.ndtv.com

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Former home secretary S Lakshminarayanan donated a gold-plated Ramcharitmanas to the Ayodhya Ram Temple
The manuscript was displayed for months before being removed without explanation despite repeated inquiries
Lakshminarayanan has sought transparency and accountability from temple authorities and government officials

Where is the gold-plated Ramcharitmanas kept currently?
New Delhi:

As the investigation of the alleged donation scam related to the Ayodhya Ram Temple continues, former union home secretary S Lakshminarayanan, who had donated a gold-plated 'Ramcharitmanas' worth close to Rs five crores to the temple, told NDTV about how people asking if it was safe pushed him to ask some serious questions.

The former bureaucrat said that while the 'Ramcharitmanas' was displayed to the devotees for some time initially, it has now been removed from there, and no explanations have come so far in this regard - despite his repeated efforts to seek clarification from the temple authorities.

Gift From Devotion

The former Home Secretary said that the gold-plated 'Ramcharitmanas' was not only a gift, but it was the end result of a long spiritual journey that his family underwent.

"The Ramcharitmanas was the treasure of devotion of my late mother. She spent almost 15 to 18 years of her life writing the name of Lord Ram. My family has been associated with the Ram Janmabhoomi movement for many decades. The first brick sent from Kanyakumari for the movement came from my father in law's house. We are a family of Lord Ram," he told NDTV.

Asserting that he feels blessed by the Lord for allowing him to retire, he said that after retirement, he felt it was time for him to dedicate some of his earnings back to Lord Ram. "The government pension is sufficient for my needs. I lead a very simple life. I felt that whatever wealth God had blessed me with, it should go back in his service," he said.

The gold-plated 'Ramcharitmanas', which Lakshminarayanan and his wife Saraswathy donated to Ram Temple, has a value of approximately Rs 4.5 crore to Rs 5 crore. The manuscript is made of gold, silver, and copper and weighs around 147 kg. It has 522 gold-plated pages with all 10,902 verses of Goswami Tulsidas's Ramcharitmanas. It was gifted to the Ram Temple Trust in April 2024.

NDTV has photographs of the 'Ramcharitmanas' gifted by the couple.

"It Was Displayed For Months And Then It Just Disappeared"

Claiming that the 'Ramcharitmanas' was initially on display at the temple and was viewed by devotees, Lakshminarayanan said, "It was worshipped and viewed every day. I was very happy then suddenly it was taken away."

According to him, assurances were initially given over where the Ramcharitmanas would be kept.

"Initially, it was assured that it would be kept near the sanctum sanctorum. Later, it was told that it cannot be kept there and will be kept somewhere else. Ultimately, even those assurances could not be met," he alleged.

He said the manuscript was on display for almost five months before it was removed.

Questions With No Answers

Alleging that getting answers has become very difficult after the removal of Ramcharitmanas from display, Lakshminarayanan said, "I made several visits. Each time it became very difficult for me to meet the concerned people. I sought an explanation but did not get any satisfactory answers in this regard."

Claiming that he is not seeking any kind of recognition, he said that he only wants transparency in the process since it is the offering of faith.

"I did not want any publicity. All I wanted was transparency," he said.

Over time, he claimed, it has become very difficult to obtain the assurances given earlier.

"People Have Started Asking Me If My Gift Was Safe Or Not"

Claiming that the issue assumes a different dimension after the news of the scam has been in media, he said, "People started asking me if my Ramcharitmanas is safe or not. It really troubled me a lot."

The former bureaucrat said that he approached the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, other senior officials of the UP government, as well as some people related to temple administration. "My request was very simple. Get an audit done. Find out where the offerings are and whether everything has been properly accounted for or not," he said.

Raising The Issue With RSS

The former bureaucrat said that some RSS functionaries advised him to raise the issue higher up after his attempts to raise this issue locally did not yield results.

He said that he facilitated a meeting with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat at an event in Hyderabad.

"He was extremely courteous and attentive to my issues. He appreciated my devotion and promised me that he would help me in any way possible," Lakshminarayanan said.

However, claiming that no progress has been made to date despite several follow-ups, he said, "People who helped me in raising this issue multiple times say that even their concerns are not being addressed."

"This Scam Should Never Have Happened"

Lakshminarayanan said the whole scam was "completely avoidable".

According to him, those who have been entrusted with the management of the temple have the responsibility to ensure strict supervision.

"There was a total failure of supervision. Such a thing should never have happened," he said.

On Champat Rai's Exit

When asked about the exit of Ram Temple Trust's General Secretary Champat Rai, he said, "Apart from the moral responsibility, there is also the responsibility of supervision. When such a thing happens under someone's watch, accountability becomes necessary."

"Devotees Want Justice"

Welcoming the recent call for a complete investigation of the case, he said, "Lord Ram belongs to all of us. People donated to temple with faith and emotions. The trust will be restored only when those responsible are identified and action is taken."

According to him, the whole scam has greatly disturbed many devotees who donated to the temple - thinking that their offering would be preserved.

"My Only Demand Is Transparency"

While criticising the management of the temple, Lakshminarayanan said that he is not fighting for any recognition.

"The Ram Temple is the lifelong dream of my family. My only demand is transparency and accountability," he said, adding that he has repeatedly requested information regarding the gold-plated Ramcharitmanas and wants it put back in the place from where it was initially kept.

"I gifted it out of devotion. I only want to know what has happened and ensure that offerings of devotees are properly accounted for," he said.

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