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Ram Mandir Trust to appoint first CEO, revamp key panels today

The Trust is also expected to reconstitute all five of its committees, with changes likely in the Finance and Audit Committees.

Updated on: Jul 22, 2026, 08:44:26 IST
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The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust will hold two crucial meetings on Wednesday to appoint the Ram Mandir’s first chief executive officer (CEO), reconstitute its five key committees and fill three vacant trustee posts, amid heightened scrutiny following the alleged donation-money embezzlement controversy.

The Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. (PTI)
The Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. (PTI)

The Trust’s executive committee will first meet at 3 pm at the Ram Janmabhoomi complex before convening a second meeting at Mani Ram Das Chhavni Peeth, the residence of Trust chairman Mahant Nritya Gopal Das.

The appointment of the temple’s first CEO is expected to be the most important decision. A three-member search committee will submit a shortlist of three candidates, one of whom will be selected to oversee the temple’s administration, finances and devotee services.

The post attracted applications from retired bureaucrats, corporate leaders and Ram devotees. The selection panel comprises retired Justice Pramod Kohli, retired Lt Gen Vishnukant Chaturvedi and former NIT Raipur director Suresh Haware.

Senior trustees, including treasurer Swami Govind Dev Giri, Vishwa Teerth Prasannacharya, Vasudevanand Saraswati and interim general secretary Krishna Mohan, arrived in Ayodhya on Tuesday ahead of the meeting.

Three vacant trustee posts will also be filled. The vacancies arose after former general secretary Champat Rai and trustee Anil Mishra resigned following the alleged donation controversy, while trustee Vimlendra Mohan Pratap Mishra died in August 2025. Rai and Mishra’s resignations were accepted at the Trust’s July 6 meeting.

Trustees are also expected to discuss the SIT report on the alleged donation embezzlement. The Uttar Pradesh government constituted a three-member SIT on June 13, extending its deadline to July 15. The meeting is also likely to deliberate on the fresh UP Police SIT constituted following the Supreme Court’s suggestion for a deeper probe.

Meanwhile, Ram temple trust member and Nirmohi Akhara’s Ayodhya chief mahant, Mahant Dinendra Das, on Tuesday denied reports claiming he had been removed from his post through an Akhara meeting held on July 5, calling them “baseless and misleading.”

Addressing a press conference, Das said the Akhara has 19 panchs, of whom 13 support him. He alleged that a section of the panchs was conspiring against him.

He also said the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust meeting scheduled for 3 pm on Wednesday would discuss filling three vacant trustee posts. The agenda will also include counting the cash donations at the Ram Mandir and reviewing the temple’s security arrangements. HTC

 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Pawan Dixit

Pawan Dixit, Assistant Editor, brings over 20 years of frontline reporting experience to the newsroom. A specialist on Uttar Pradesh politics and governance, he has reported from the ground across the state’s most consequential stories. He cut his teeth in eastern UP, spending 15 years covering the region. Based in Varanasi, he reported the 2012 UP Assembly polls and the 2014 Lok Sabha elections that reshaped the state’s political map. Moving to Lucknow in 2016, he has since led coverage of the 2017 and 2022 UP Assembly elections and the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. His reporting tracks the BJP’s strategy, opposition moves, and voter sentiment across all 75 districts. Pawan has been a constant presence in Ayodhya since 2016. He reported the entire arc of the Ram Mandir movement — from the legal fight to the Supreme Court verdict, through temple construction, to the inauguration. He continues to track every development at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. On the state beat, he covers the BJP, the Industrial Development Department, and handles key outstation political assignments. He also reports major cases from the district court, Lucknow bench of the High Court, and the State Information Commission. Along with this, he also reports on NGT's important decisions related to UP. Known for sharp sourcing and clear analysis, Pawan connects politics, policy, infrastructure and faith — the forces driving UP today. He has reported developments in Ayodhya and Ram Mandir movement since 2016. The Supreme Court's Ram Mandir verdict, temple construction and the its opening have been reported by him. He reports all developments in Ayodhya and Ram Mandir Trust. He covers state BJP, Industrial development department, outstation political assignments, reports special cases from district court, high court and state information commission

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