Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust expands membership and initiates CEO selection

A few months after the Ram Temple donation theft surfaced, allowing the Opposition to launch sustained onslaughts against the BJP-led Central government, structural changes in the trust that manages the Ayodhya temple have begun. The broadest change is that a chief executive officer -- not the temple trust chief -- will handle management and financial affairs.Who will lead the temple will be decided at a later date, sources said.Three new members have been added to make the temple trust more robust.

They are: Madan Mohan Pandey from Ayodhya, Mahesh Bhagchandka from Delhi and Nirmala Yadav from Shikohabad.The Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, which is in charge of temple affairs, will appoint the first full-time CEO of the temple. It has prepared a shortlist of three top candidates from an extensive list of 5,585 applicants.Eight people who were linked to the counting of donation money have been arrested.

The general secretary of the trust, Champat Rai, had to resign after the theft triggered a massive political row. He later told the special investigation team that the bank's lax security measures led to the theft.Following the legal action and Rai's resignation, the trust has been discussing how to reinforce the temple's management with robust measures.

It has convened a meeting on Wednesday.Also read: Ram Temple Ex-Top Official Champat Rai Gets Clean Chit In Donation Theft CaseKamalnayan Das, who is part of the trust's religious affairs committee, said ahead of the meeting that the priority is smooth functioning of the temple."I have no knowledge about who will be made the CEO.

My wish is that the affairs of the temple should run smoothly," he told PTI.To further overhaul the trust, members are expected to also discuss the appointment of a spokesperson and amendment to the trust deed.The search panel is headed by retired judge Pramod Kohli and included retired Lieutenant General Vishnukant Chaturvedi and former scientist Suresh Haware.A trust official told the news agency that "three highly qualified professionals" have been recommended.

They were evaluated on parameters like institutional leadership, management expertise, integrity and vision required to head an institution of national and international significance.They were judged in a 600-mark evaluation process. The final interviews of 16 candidates took place in Ayodhya on August 11 and 12.