NEW DELHI, April 17 -- Senior BJP leader Dr. Vijay Jolly has accused his group, the "Delhi Study Group," of being cheated in a cyber scam related to fake room bookings in Ayodhya. The scam was said to involve the establishment of a replica website of a well-known Dharamshala, misleading devotees into paying for non-existent accommodations.
Dr Jolly disclosed that arrangements were being made for a pilgrimage to Ayodhya on April 22, 2025, when hundreds of Ram devotees from Delhi will go by the Vande Bharat Express for darshan of Ram Lalla at the Ram Temple on April 23 and return on April 24. As in earlier years, accommodation facilities were arranged at the Shri Janaki Mahal Trust, Vasudev Ghat, Parikrama Road, Ayodhya.
Nevertheless, cyber scammers allegedly established a duplicate website of the Shri Janaki Mahal Trust and asked for advance payments for accommodation bookings. The money was taken in the account of Kundan Kumar under IDBI Bank Account No.: 1022104000181464 using mobile no. 84878-46269. Thousands of rupees were reportedly misappropriated this way from innocent devotees, including Dr. Jolly's organisation. A complaint in writing for 'cognizance' of the incident has also been filed at Saket Police Station's Cyber Cell in South Delhi under Diary No.: 221, dated April 7, 2025. Police have initiated an 'investigation' into the incident.
Dr. Jolly, who has been at the forefront of organising pilgrimages to Ayodhya for a number of years-such as a symbolic consecration of the Ram Mandir using water from 156 nations in 2023-was visibly disappointed and distressed by the incident. He underlined the importance of raising public awareness and cyber surveillance, particularly during religious festivals that draw huge crowds.
Authorities have urged devotees to verify booking websites and avoid unverified payments, warning of rising cyber scams targeting religious tourists using names of reputed Dharamshalas and hotels.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.