E-Paper
Trust purchases 3 Ayodhya temples for expansion of Ram Janmabhoomi campus
The three temples, situated in the Ramkot area of Ayodhya, are about 250 to 300 years old and share boundaries with the Ram Janmabhoomi campus.
Among the oldest temples in Ayodhya, Kaushalya Bhavan, Fikerah Ram Mandir and Deen Kuti Mandir in the Ramkot area of the temple town have been purchased by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra for expansion of the Ram Janmabhoomi (RJB) campus, HT has learnt.
Around 250 to 300 years old, these temples share their boundaries with the Ram Janmabhoomi campus.
Out of the three, the Fikerah Ram Mandir is the biggest and falls inside the periphery of the Ram Janmabhoomi campus while Deen Kuti Mandir is the smallest.
Mahant Kaushal Kishore Tripathi and Mahant Yashoda Nandan Tripathi aka Mahant Lalluji, the two brothers who own the Kaushalya Bhavan spread over 15 biswa or 1881 square metre land (1 biswa = 125.419104 sq metre), are preparing to leave the place and hand it over to the Trust.
The Tripathi brothers live there, along with their family members, including grandchildren.
The Trust has given ₹4 crore to owners of the Kaushalya Bhavan along with alternative land and ₹3.70 crore to Mahant Raghuvar Saran of Fikerah Ram Mandir along with alternative land.
The Trust has given nine biswa land in the Ramkot area and 5.5 biswa land at Bag Bijaisi to the Tripathi brothers and nine biswa land in the Ramkot area to Raghuvar Saran of Fikerah Ram Mandir.
“(Trust general secretary) Champat Rai, Ayodhya mayor and (Trust member) Anil Mishra came to meet us to request for the handover of the Kaushalya Bhavan for expansion of the Ram Janmabhoomi campus,” said Mahant Yashoda Nandan Tripathi.
“For ages, people were waiting for the Ram Mandir to come up in Ayodhya. Now, when the temple is being constructed, the Trust wants our land for expansion of the Ram Janmabhoomi. We have handed over (sold) the property to the Trust,” added Tripathi.
“The Trust had requested to hand over these temples for expansion of Ram Mandir as they are in close proximity to the Ram Janmabhoomi complex. Their owners have agreed, and the Trust has also compensated them,” said Mahant Dhinendra Das, member of the Trust.
Animesh Tripathi, grandson of Mahant Kaushal Kishore Tripathi, who is an engineer by profession, said, “Change is the only constant in life. As the Ram temple is coming up, it was necessary to vacate the place.”
Animesh, who worked in Mumbai, lost his job due to the Covid-19 pandemic. After the lockdown in Mumbai, he returned to Ayodhya and will remain here till he gets another job.
Mahant Raghuvar Saran of Fikerah Ram Mandir, which is spread over 21 biswa or 2,633 sq mt land, is nowadays busy with the construction work at the new place allotted by the Ram Mandir Trust in the Ramkot area where he will shift in order to relocate the temple.
“My temple is inside the Ram Janmabhoomi. I had no option but to accept the Trust’s offer to sell the land for expansion of Ram Mandir,” said Mahant Raghuvar Saran.
“But I had demanded an alternative land in the Ramkot area only for my new temple. I did not want to move out of this locality. As I have to vacate the place at the earliest, I am busy with construction work at this new place,” said Raghuvar Saran while giving instructions to labourers at the site.
The Trust has purchased Deen Kuti Mandir for ₹30 lakh from Mahant Sant Das. However, around 10 days ago, Das passed away. Before his death, Sant Das handed over the amount to his followers.
The Trust is in the process of purchasing around four-five houses in the Ramkot area that are close to the Ram Janmabhoomi campus.
