Eight arrested over alleged theft at Ayodhya's Ram Mandir

Lucknow: Indian police have arrested eight people over allegations of theft and misappropriation of offerings at the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, northern Uttar Pradesh, authorities said.

Allegations regarding irregularities in the handling of donations led to a criminal case being registered on Thursday, with police arresting eight people including temple employees, according to a government statement issued late Thursday.

Most of them were involved in counting or handling cash and valuables donated by devotees including gold and silver, media reports said.

The government has not disclosed scale of the alleged embezzlement. Opposition parties and media reports say it could amount to more than $20 million.

"It is so shameful that a shrine of such supreme importance is being discussed for all the wrong reasons," said Viti Saxena, a 44-year-old homemaker who had donated to the temple.

"I now wonder if that actually went into the temple coffers or not. It is a matter of global shame now," Saxena told AFP.

"The faith of countless Hindu believers is shaken."

The eight arrested face charges of criminal breach of trust, theft, criminal conspiracy and corruption, the government statement said.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, whose state government had established the Special Investigation Team looking into the case, was quoted in the statement as having vowed that "no guilty person will be spared".