'He is untainted in my eyes': Ram temple trust treasurer defends Champat Rai after resignation

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Krishna Mohan has been given additional charge as interim general secretary.Addressing a press conference in Ayodhya, Giri said Rai had dedicated his life to the Ram temple movement and chose to resign to ensure a fair investigation."In these circumstances, we accepted the resignation.

At the same time, we expressed our appreciation for the services rendered by Champat Rai Ji. It was an extraordinary decision that he took voluntarily. He has worked for the construction of the Ram Temple for many years, from the very beginning, when there was not even any activity of this kind, until today.

While acknowledging and respecting all the work he has done, we also accepted his resignation in view of the generosity he showed in taking this decision under the present circumstances."Giri also made it clear that Rai's resignation did not diminish his personal regard for the veteran VHP leader."He is untainted in my eyes.

He has lived a life of sacrifice for the Ram temple movement," Giri said.Explaining why the trust accepted the resignations, Giri said the decision was mandated by the trust's constitution after legal advice from senior jurist K Parasaran."In this situation, it became necessary for us to act because of the atmosphere that has been created.

Our General Secretary, Champat Rai, and trustee Anil Mishra submitted their resignations. As the General Secretary of the Trust, Champat Rai Ji felt pained. He believed that until the entire matter is resolved properly, the accused are caught, and they receive appropriate punishment, it would not be appropriate for them to continue in their positions.

With this thought, he voluntarily submitted his resignation. Whether to accept or reject the resignation was not in our hands. K.

Parasaran raised an important point. He explained that, according to the Constitution of the Trust, once a resignation is submitted, it is deemed to have been accepted automatically. Therefore, we had no other option.

He read out the relevant clauses of the Trust Constitution and explained to us that once the resignation had been submitted, accepting or rejecting it was no longer a matter of our discretion. We had to treat the resignation as accepted."Krishna Mohan has been entrusted with the responsibilities of interim general secretary until a permanent appointment is made."

We remain committed to ensuring the smooth functioning of all future arrangements. The responsibility of serving as the interim General Secretary has been entrusted to Shri Krishna Mohan Ji, who is seated with me. He will choose a few colleagues to assist him and, together with them, will carry out these responsibilities.

Given his approach and experience, we are confident that he will discharge these duties with great efficiency."The trust also announced the formation of a three-member committee to recommend candidates for the post of general secretary. The panel comprises retired Justice Pradeep Kohli, retired Lieutenant General Vishnukant Chaturvedi and Suresh Havare, a former administrator of the Shirdi Sai Baba Trust."

It has been decided that, while the Board of Trustees will be fully constituted, a three-member committee has been appointed to present names to us. This committee comprises retired Justice Pradeep Kohli, retired Lieutenant General Vishnukant Chaturvedi, and Suresh ji Havare, who successfully managed the Shirdi institution for ten years. We have finalised this three-member committee; they will interview various candidates