His family has refused to comment on the allegations.

At his village, Babpur Nariyawa in Pratapgarh, pradhan Raju Yadav said, “The Shukla family has long depended on agriculture and runs a small paan shop in the village. After moving to Ayodhya about two years ago, Avinash would return home only occasionally, often in a second-hand car he had bought recently. The family home had also been undergoing renovation in recent months.”

“It is a large family, and we assumed that several members were earning and their financial situation had improved,” Yadav said.

Residents said Avinash, one of four brothers, had worked at a local shop in Pratapgarh before moving to Ayodhya reportedly with the help of an acquaintance there.

Probe so far

Police teams have made several visits to the family’s home — the latest on Thursday — and questioned his parents and sought information about the family’s property holdings.

Police believe Avinash could provide further leads in the case, as a substantial part of the recoveries made so far was allegedly based on information provided by him.

Police said they have not ruled out the possibility that some of the allegedly stolen money may have been used to purchase or commission jewellery.

Besides Avinash, the other arrested accused are Lavkush Mishra, Anukalp Mishra, Manish Kumar Yadav, Karunesh Pandey, Ramashankar Mishra, Ram Shankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav, and Subhash Srivastav.

Police have so far recovered Rs 79.80 lakh from seven of the eight arrested men.