NE NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, FEB 5
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has notified the Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust on Wednesday following the announcement made by the Prime Minister on the floor of the Lok Sabha early in the day.
Today we take a historic step ahead towards building a grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya!
It was my honour to address the Lok Sabha on this subject, which is special to many.
I also applauded the remarkable spirit of the people of India.
This is what I said… pic.twitter.com/MJHDHnR3Xo
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 5, 2020
The Trust is registered at the South Delhi residence of K. Parasaran, senior advocate who appeared in the Supreme Court on behalf of Mahant Suresh Das, a defendant in a law suit filed by the Sunni Waqf Board and others in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case. Parasaran (92) is likely to head the Trust, though the composition was not officially announced.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said in a tweet, “There will be 15 trustees in the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust out of which one trustee will always be from the Dalit society.”
The Trust, he said, would be independent to take every decision related to the temple and 67 acres would be transferred to it.
The MHA notification said a scheme had also been approved to “make necessary provisions in regard to functioning of the trust including matters relating to management of the trust, powers of the trustees including construction of the temple and all necessary, incidental and supplemental matters thereto.”
“… accordance with the said Scheme, a Trust by the name Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra has been registered with its registered office at R-20, Greater Kailash Part -1, New Delhi, 110048,” the notification said.
The MHA worked on the modalities for establishing the Trust, as mandated by the Supreme Court in its November 9, 2019 ruling. The Trust was to be set up by February 9, within three months of the court order.
The notification said that “taking into account past history of the communal disturbances” and large number of people who will be visiting the temple, the Central government decides to “effectuate the allotment of a suitable land measuring five acres to Sunni Central Waqf Board at a prominent place in Ayodhya, outside the land (67 acres) acquired under the said Act.”
The MHA said, “In compliance with the directions of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, possession of the inner and outer courtyards of the disputed site shall be handed over to the said Trust and the Central Government is at liberty to make suitable provisions in respect to the rest of the acquired land by handing it over to the said Trust for management and development in terms of the Scheme framed by the Central Government”.
