{
  "id": 29146,
  "title": "₹18 crore donations 'stolen' annually from Mumbai's Siddhivinayak Temple: MNS chief Raj Thackeray",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/02/18-crore-donations-stolen-annually-from-mumbais-siddhivinayak-temple",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-02T05:01:39.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Live Mint",
    "slug": "live-mint",
    "url": "https://www.livemint.com/news/india/rs-18-crore-donations-stolen-annually-from-mumbais-siddhivinayak-temple-mns-chief-raj-thackeray-11785645946872.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Mumbai's Siddhivinayak Temple has been experiencing an annual loss of ₹18 crore due to alleged theft of donations, according to MNS chief Raj Thackeray. He also claimed that ₹1,400 crore was stolen from the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. Thackeray urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address the issue. At a recent event, Thackeray highlighted that the temple's weekly donations had plummeted to less than ₹50 lakh after the theft was discovered, but later increased to ₹1.5 crore. Eight employees were arrested, and trustees revealed a letter to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Temple trust chairman Sada Sarvankar stated that the income had grown from ₹114 crore to ₹182 crore. Police are currently conducting an investigation into the alleged theft at the Ram Temple. Mahant Dinendra Das, a member of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, expressed his objections to placing a picture of Ram Lalla on the temple floor, urging MPs to respect religious sentiments. Enhanced surveillance measures have been implemented to ensure transparency and security in the donation process.",
  "summary": "MNS chief Raj Thackeray said the temple's weekly earnings from donations were less than ₹50 lakh before this theft was caught, and afterwards the collection rose to ₹1.5 crore.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Live Mint",
        "title": "RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat to interact with Gen Z, Gen Alpha students in Mumbai on August 6",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/03/rss-chief-mohan-bhagwat-to-interact-with-gen-z-gen-alpha-students-in",
        "published": "2026-08-03T14:43:58.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}