Donation 'irregularities' at Badrinath Dham; FIR against temple committee's suspended employee

Pramod Nautiyal was serving as a personal assistant in the chairman’s office. A show-cause notice was issued to him after the allegations came to light.

Police in Chamoli district on Wednesday registered an FIR against an employee of the Shri Badrinath Kedarnath Temple Committee (BKTC), a day after he was suspended after an internal preliminary enquiry found irregularities in handling of donations at Badrinath Dham.

A view of the decorated Badrinath Temple on the day of opening for the devotees during the ongoing Char Dham Yatra 2026, in Chamoli. (ANI)

Pramod Nautiyal was serving as a personal assistant in the chairman’s office. A show-cause notice was issued to him on July 3, after the allegations came to light. He has also been attached to the BKTC office in Joshimath. He will not be permitted to leave the headquarters without prior approval and will be required to fully cooperate with the ongoing proceedings, said officials.

The FIR was lodged under BNS sections 306 (theft by clerk or servant of property in possession of the master) and 316(5) (criminal breach of trust).

BKTC chief executive officer Sohan Singh Rangar said that the panel found Nautiyal’s response to the notice “suspicious” and recommended action against him.