Friends, Temple Donation Theft is once again in the news and this time the donation theft is from Shree Siddhivinayak Temple, Mumbai.
Recently, Raj Thackeray, Chief of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) sparked a political storm by alleging that approximately Rs 18 Cr in donations is stolen from Mumbai’s Shree Siddhivinayak Temple. The Siddhivinayak Temple Trust has confirmed the arrest of employees regarding financial irregularities but has ordered a formal audit to verify the exact numbers.
The Core Allegations
- Thackeray’s Claim: While addressing a press conference recently, he stated that corruption has heavily penetrated religious sites, claiming a yearly loss of Rs 18 Cr from Siddhivinayak.
- Evidence Cited: he read out a formal complaint letter written by eight temple trustees to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
- The Revenue Jump: The letter noted that before the rogue employees were caught, weekly collections on Wednesday averaged less than Rs 50 lakh. Immediately after their apprehension, weekly donations surged to Rs 1.5 Cr over three weeks, exposing a consistent siphoning loop.
- High-Level Involvement: The trustees’ letter expressed a strong suspicion that higher-level administrative authorities may be involved in backing the malpractice.
Response from Temple Trust
- Arrests Confirmed: Temple Trust Chairman Sada Sarvankar confirmed that nine employees were arrested in connection with the theft and subsequently suspended. The accused are currently out on bail.
- Audit Ordered: The trust has officially called for an independent audit to evaluate the sudden decrease in donations over the last two years and establish full transparency.
- Alternative Explanation: Sarvankar pushed back against the Rs 18 Cr figure stating that the spike in collections also stems from tightened security systems, which boosted the temple’s annual income from Rs 114 Cr to Rs 182 Cr.
Political Ramifications
The incident has escalated into fierce political debate across Maharashtra. Opposition leaders, including Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut, have supported the call for a deep inquiry, accusing the ruling NDA faction of poor management since taking over temple control. Thackeray has requested PM Narendra Modi to intervene and address the growing trend of financial mismanagement of major holy shrines.
As per the latest news published in The Times of India, Mumbai today: Siddhivinayak temple’s trustees refused to resign in the wake of this controversy, and blamed staffers appointed by the erstwhile dispensation under Uddhav Thackeray for a series of thefts. Calling themselves whistleblowers, the trustees, led by senior Sena leader Sada Sarvankar, told reporters that they caught nine employees for theft in March and wrote to the law and judiciary department seeking a probe; we did not write to the Deputy CM as claimed by Raj Thackeray. An employee, Rajendra Pendurkar, who had been working at the temple since 2009, was arrested in March for stealing cash from the donation box. Within a few days, eight staffers were arrested for stealing money through a “skimming” racket. All arrested employees were permanent staffers.
Donation theft has become an important issue, and it has been happening across the holy places run by different religions, whether they are run by Hindus, Muslims, Christians or members of any other faith. The central government should bring a stricter law to control this nuisance.
Anil Malik
Mumbai, India
4th August 2026