Viral Video Misidentified: Cash Donation Not for Ayodhya Ram Mandir, But Rajasthan Temple

A video of a woman donating bundles of cash, allegedly at Ayodhya’s Ram Mandir, is making the rounds on social media. The video featured a photo of the Ram Lalla idol placed in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple.

Some claimed that the woman donated Rs 3 lakh to the Ayodhya Ram Mandir. Many replied to one such post, sharing their views about the alleged donation.

India Today Fact Check found that this video is not from Ayodhya at all. It is from Rajasthan’s Shri Sanwalia Mandir.

Our Probe

Reverse-searching keyframes of the viral video led us to several September 2023 social media posts featuring the video in question. According to these posts, the video was from Rajasthan’s Shri Sanwalia Mandir, where a woman allegedly donated Rs 10 lakh in cash.

  
 
 
 
 
 
 
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We then found a media report about this video, dated September 11, 2023. According to it, the video was shot at the Shri Sanwalia Seth Prakatya Mandir in the Chittorgarh district of Rajasthan. The woman in the video reportedly donated Rs 10 lakh on Janmashtami, which was celebrated on September 7 that year.

We found the video in question shared with the same information on various YouTube channels. We then compared a better-quality version of the clip with another video from the temple, focusing on the design of the donation box. Their similarities confirmed the viral video’s location. The comparison can be seen below.

We also contacted Prahlad Soni, the chief executive officer of the Shri Sanwalia Mandir. He confirmed to India Today that the video was from the temple in Mandpiya, Chittorgarh. Soni, however, added that, contrary to social media posts and news reports, the woman’s donation did not amount to Rs 10 lakh. He said, without revealing the amount, that it was a smaller figure.

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