Ayodhya: The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust on Wednesday deferred the appointment of a permanent General Secretary and the Ram Temple's first Chief Executive Officer (CEO), with trustees failing to arrive at a consensus during a crucial meeting held in the wake of the donation embezzlement case.
Acting General Secretary Krishna Mohan will continue in office, while the Trust fixed September 2 for its next meeting, when the appointments are expected to be finalised.
The two-hour meeting, held from 3 pm to 5 pm at Shri Swami Mani Ram Das Ji Maharaj Chhawani under the chairmanship of Trust president Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, focused on administrative restructuring and measures to tighten oversight of temple finances after the alleged diversion of donations.
In a significant development, the Trust expressed dissatisfaction with the State Bank of India's response after irregularities in the donation counting process surfaced. It directed its finance committee to review the Trust's banking relationship with SBI and examine the existing standard operating procedures before taking a final decision.
The Trust, however, could not deliberate on the findings of the Special Investigation Team probing the alleged embezzlement as the final investigation report has not yet been submitted. Trustees also took note of proceedings pending before the Allahabad High Court in connection with the case.
The board reviewed security arrangements at the temple and expressed satisfaction that access to the CCTV camera network, including cameras monitoring the donation counting centre, has now been provided to all security officials to strengthen surveillance and accountability.
It also approved continuation of the existing system under which the Reserve Bank of India's subsidiary, the Mint, tests the purity and quantity of gold and silver offerings made by devotees.
The meeting discussed six key agenda items, including filling three permanent trustee vacancies created by the resignation of former General Secretary Champat Rai, trustee Dr Anil Mishra and the death of trustee Raja Ayodhya Vimlendra Mohan Pratap Mishra.
The appointment of a new General Secretary also remained inconclusive. Acting General Secretary Krishna Mohan, a retired Indian Forest Service officer, and Vishwa Hindu Parishad General Secretary Bajrang Lal Bagra are understood to be the frontrunners for the post vacated by Champat Rai.
The Trust also reviewed the selection process for its first CEO, a post being created to professionalise the administration of the temple. More than 5,500 applications have been received from across the country, but trustees decided to defer the appointment until the next meeting.
Hanumat Niwas Temple Mahant Dr Mithilesh Nandini Sharan represented Ayodhya's saints at the meeting. Senior trustees present included Treasurer Govind Dev Giri, Shankaracharya Swami Vasudevanand Saraswati, Yugpurush Parmanand and Jagadguru Vishwaprasanna Tirth. Vishwa Hindu Parishad leaders Bajrang Lal Bagra and Dinesh Chandra attended as invited members.
Trustees also reviewed the progress of temple construction, administrative functioning and the restructuring of the Trust's committees, particularly the finance and audit committee, as part of efforts to strengthen governance after the donation theft controversy.
The meeting was the second convened after the alleged embezzlement came to light. At its previous meeting on July 6, the Trust had accepted the resignations of Champat Rai and Dr Anil Mishra, who stepped down on June 26 following the controversy, and appointed Krishna Mohan as acting General Secretary.
