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A huge check of Rs 4 crore given by a female devotee from Chennai for the facilities of the employees and servants associated with the grand Ram temple of Ayodhya has not been paid. When this check was deposited in the bank for clearing, during investigation it was found that only Rs 3 was deposited in the bank account of the woman who had issued the cheque.

After the check of such a huge amount was dishonored (bounced), now the bank management has started the process of sending an official notice to the woman concerned.

According to the information received, this female devotee from Chennai had handed over this check of Rs 4 crore to Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Tirtha Kshetra Trust for the facilities and welfare of the temple employees. Apart from this, he had also made a separate donation of Rs 10,000 for the construction of Ram temple and the darshan of Ramlala.

It is being said that the intention of the female devotee was that this huge amount of Rs 4 crore given by her should be spent exclusively on the comforts and amenities of the employees working in the temple premises. For this he had also demanded a written assurance from the officials of the trust. However, no such written assurance was issued by the Trust in this regard.

After this, when this check of Rs 4 crore was deposited in the bank for payment as per the rules, its payment got stuck due to lack of sufficient balance. Under banking rules, after a check bounces, it is mandatory to give written information to the account holder. Under this process, the bank can now send a notice to the woman and ask for a written explanation on the reasons for not having sufficient funds in the account and issuing a check of such a huge amount.

Due to the rejection of a check of huge amount of Rs 4 crore, this entire matter is being taken very seriously at the bank level. Generally, in cases of check bounce, there is a strict provision for legal action under the relevant Banking and Negotiable Instruments Act (NI Act). However, at present only the initial paper process of sending the notice is being carried out by the bank.

On the other hand, members of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust are also trying to find a respectable solution to this matter by talking directly to the female devotee. However, no official statement has yet been made publicly by the Trust on this entire incident.

Checks worth crores have bounced before also

It is noteworthy that in the year 2020, a nationwide fund dedication campaign was launched by Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust for the construction of Ram Temple. During that 45-day mega-campaign, a huge contribution of about Rs 3,500 crore was collected from devotees across the country. In this, a large number of Ram devotees also made their invaluable contribution through cheque.

Even during that historic campaign, checks worth about Rs 100 crore had bounced due to various technical reasons and irregularities in accounts. However, later due to the efforts of the Trust, most of the checks were successfully recovered by re-depositing them in the bank. Despite this, checks worth about Rs 22 crore remained pending recovery.

Donations worth crores come every month

At present, there is information that donations of about Rs 3 to 4 crore are being received every month through different mediums from India and abroad for Ram Lalla present in Ayodhya Ram Temple. Apart from the cash offered by the devotees, this also includes the amount of donation received through online transfer and cheque. According to statistics, every month the Trust receives donations of around Rs 1 to 1.5 crore only through cheques.

After the incident of bounce of this latest check of Rs 4 crore, now emphasis can be laid on the temple trust and bank management to take extra care and vigilance during the acceptance of large amount cheques, depositing them in the bank and their clearing process. At present, a detailed and official statement is awaited from the Ram Mandir Trust in this entire episode.