5,585 applied, 3 names on the table: Will Ram Temple Trust pick its first CEO tomorrow?

Retired bureaucrats are among the top contenders for the first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra, sources said, with the search committee recommending a panel of three candidates for the post on Tuesday.

The names of the three have not been disclosed. Ahead of the September 3 meeting of the Trust, the three-member committee submitted its final report after sifting through 5,585 applications. “Based on its comprehensive evaluation, the Search Committee has recommended a panel of three highly qualified professionals to the Ram Janmbhoom Trust.

These candidates represent the highest caliber of institutional leadership, management expertise, integrity and vision required to serve as Chief Executive Officer of an institution of national and international significance,” said committee secretary Sameer Panda.

“The Trust will take the final decision on the appointment and announce the selected candidate in due course,” he added. The decision to appoint a full-time CEO came after allegations of embezzlement of donations at the Ram temple led to increased scrutiny of the Trust’s financial management.

Eight accused have been arrested in the case, while three officials, including former Trust general secretary Champat Rai, have stepped down from their posts. The committee had laid down eligibility criteria: Applicants must be between 50 and 70 years of age, have at least 20 years of administrative experience, and be willing to reside in Ayodhya.

In a key eligibility condition, it said the applicant must be a “practising Hindu” with “devotion to Lord Ram” and should be proficient in both Hindi and English. The committee said the selection process was conducted through a multi-tiered evaluation combining AI-enabled technology with manual assessment.

According to a statement from the panel, teams worked simultaneously across Delhi-NCR, Pune and Sambalpur to screen and shortlist candidates in a “rigorous” and “transparent” process. After the initial screening, the names were narrowed down to 16.

They participated in online interactive sessions between August 3 and 6, followed by face-to-face interactions in Ayodhya on August 11 and 12. The committee said the final three candidates were recommended after a “comprehensive evaluation”, taking into account institutional leadership, management expertise, integrity and vision required to head an institution of “national and international significance”.

The committee comprises retired Supreme Court judge Justice Pramod Kohli, retired Lieutenant General Vishnukant Chaturvedi, and retired nuclear scientist and former chairperson of the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust in Shirdi Suresh Haware.

Panda was appointed its secretary on July 14. “During the submission of the report, Treasurer and Trustee Govinddeo; Trustee Sant Dinendra Das; Secretary General and Trustee Krishna Mohan; Ayodhya District Magistrate Shashank Tripathi; Special Invitee Member Dinesh; Secretary Jagdish Afle; and Nyas members Jagannath Gulve and Bajrang Bagada were present,” the statement said.

Maulshree Seth is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express, based in Lucknow. With over 15 years of experience in mainstream journalism, she has built a formidable reputation for her on-ground reporting across Uttar Pradesh.

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