In the wake of the alleged theft of Ram Mandir donations, the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is reviewing its bylaws to create the post of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and strengthen its banking arrangements.
The proposals are expected to be placed before the Trust’s meeting in Ayodhya on July 22, sources familiar with the developments in the temple town said.
The meeting is also expected to consider new trustees to fill vacancies created by the resignations of general secretary Champat Rai and trustee Anil Mishra.
The proposed amendments seek to address governance gaps exposed by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe by establishing clearer administrative accountability, strengthening financial oversight and improving safeguards for handling temple donations.
Treasurer Govind Dev Giri and trustee K. Parasaran, a senior Supreme Court advocate who drafted the Trust’s bylaws when it was constituted in February 2020, are said to have already discussed the proposed changes, they added.
The existing deed—the legal instrument that establishes a Trust and lays down its objects, powers, governance structure and rules—contains no provision for appointing a CEO. Therefore, the bylaws will have to be amended before the post can be created and the proposed administrative and financial reforms implemented.
The Trust has constituted a three-member committee comprising Justice (Retd.) Pramod Kohli, Lieutenant General (Retd.) Vishnukant Chaturvedi and former NIT Raipur chairperson Suresh Haware to recommend candidates for the CEO’s post.
The Trust currently maintains accounts with banks such as the State Bank of India (SBI), Punjab National Bank and Bank of Baroda.
The cash collected from temple donation boxes was reportedly largely deposited with SBI. The Trust is now exploring alternatives, including engaging another bank or distributing deposits among multiple eligible banks. In this connection, Govind Dev Giri has also met senior officials of a private-sector bank, the sources said.
The proposed changes follow the SIT’s preliminary findings, which flagged serious procedural lapses in the cash-counting process.
In his statement to the SIT, Champat Rai reportedly alleged that SBI failed to enforce mandatory safeguards, including frisking counting staff, providing pocketless uniforms and implementing other security protocols for high-value cash operations.
Govind Giri, too, blamed the SBI for “shirking” its responsibility in his interaction with the media following the last Trust meeting.
“Since the work was carried out in collaboration with SBI, it also bears responsibility, and we have had to suffer the severe consequences of its lack of oversight. In my view, the FIR should actually have been filed by SBI, not by our Trust, though the well-intentioned members of our Trust went ahead and filed it themselves. The responsibility truly lies with SBI. We will take appropriate measures, seek guidance from all concerned, and fully restore the reputation of the Ram Mandir, which has been tarnished,” he had said.