Ram Mandir donor's Rs 4 crore cheque bounces. Bank account had only Rs 3

A Rs 4 crore cheque given to the Ram Temple Trust by a Chennai devotee bounced after the bank found only Rs 3 in the account. The Trust is in talks with the donor as the bank prepares a notice and the failed donation draws attention.A Rs 4 crore cheque given to the Ram Temple Trust by a Chennai devotee bounced after the bank found only Rs 3 in the account. A Rs 4 crore cheque meant to help provide facilities for staff at Ayodhya's Ram Temple has bounced after the bank found just Rs 3 in the account from which the cheque was issued.The cheque was given to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust by a woman devotee from Chennai. When the Trust deposited it, the bank found that the account did not have enough funds.The bank is now preparing to send a notice to the woman seeking an explanation for issuing the high-value cheque despite the lack of sufficient funds in the account.The devotee had also made a separate donation of Rs 10,000 to the temple. According to reports, she had sought a written assurance from the Trust that the Rs 4 crore would be used exclusively for facilities for temple staff.The Trust did not provide such an assurance, and is currently attempting to resolve the matter through discussions with the woman. The unusual episode comes against the backdrop of the large sums collected for the construction and upkeep of the temple.During the 2020 Nidhi Samarpan Abhiyan -- a massive outreach and fundraising campaign launched for the construction of the temple -- around Rs 3,500 crore was collected in 45 days.A large number of cheques were received during the campaign, of which cheques worth around Rs 100 crore initially bounced for technical reasons.Most of the amount was subsequently recovered through redepositing the cheques, though around Rs 22 crore reportedly remained pending recovery.The temple receives around Rs 3-4 crore in donations every month through cash, online transfers and cheques. Cheque donations alone account for an estimated Rs 1-1.5 crore each month.The Trust has not issued an official statement on the matter yet.The development comes over two months after the theft and misappropriation of donations made at the temple came to light in June.- EndsPublished By: Karishma Saurabh KalitaPublished On: Aug 31, 2026 08:30 IST