Govt donates Re 1 in cash to Ayodhya Trust to begin its work
New Delhi: The government has made the first donation of Re 1 in cash to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust to begin its work of constructing a Ram temple in Ayodhya, officials said.
D Murmu, an Under Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, contributed the amount to the trust on behalf of the central government on Wednesday.
The trust will accept donations, grants, subscriptions, aids or contribution from any person in cash, kind, including immovable properties, without any conditions, the officials said.
It will initially function from the residence of senior lawyer K Parasaran but will look for a permanent office later, they said.
The Centre on Wednesday constituted the independent 15-member Trust to oversee the construction of a "grand and magnificent" Ram temple in Ayodhya, an announcement made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha four days before the expiry of a three-month deadline set by the Supreme Court.
In a notification, the Union Home Ministry said the Trust will have its registered office in Greater Kailash locality, an upscale area in south Delhi, and will have a representative from the Dalit community.
The members of the trust include senior lawyer K Parasaran, Jagatguru Shankracharya, Jyothishpeethadheeshwar Swami Vasudevanand Saraswati Ji Maharaj from Allahabad, Jagatguru Madhavacharya Swami Vishwa Prasannatheerth Ji Maharaj, Pejawar Math in Udupi, Yugpurush Paramanand Ji Maharaj from Haridwar, Swami Govinddev Giri Ji Maharaj from Pune and Vimlendra Mohan Pratap Mishra from Ayodhya.
Besides, the following will be the trustees - Anil Mishra, a homoeopathic doctor from Ayodhya, Kameshwar Chaupal from Patna who is a Scheduled Caste member, and Mahant Dinendra Das, Nirmohi Akhara, Ayodhya Baithak.
Two prominent people who shall be practising Hindus will be nominated by the board of trustees with a majority resolution. One representative will be nominated by the Centre who shall be a practising Hindu by religion and a serving member of the IAS and who shall not be below the rank of joint secretary to the government of India and shall be an ex officio member.
One representative will be nominated by the UP government who shall be a practising Hindu and an IAS officer and not below the rank of secretary to the UP government and shall be an ex officio member.
The Ayodhya district collector will be the ex officio trustee who shall be a practising Hindu.If for any reason the incumbent collector is not a practising Hindu, the additional collector of Ayodhya who shall be a practising Hindu shall be an ex officio member.
The chairman of the committee for the development and administration of matters relating to the Ram Temple complex, who will be appointed by the Board of Trustees, who shall be a practising Hindu, shall be an ex officio member.
Modi said that keeping in mind the construction of the temple and the spirit of the devotees who would come to pay obeisance to Ram Lalla in the future, the government has taken another important decision to transfer the whole of the approx 67.703 acre acquired land to the new Trust.
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Cong leader Prithviraj Chavan defiant after facing verbal missiles on Op Sindoor remarks
Mumbai (PTI): Despite facing criticism, senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan on Wednesday stood by his controversial comments that India faced a "total defeat" in aerial fight with Pakistan on the first day of Operation Sindoor on May 7.
The former Union minister refused to apologise for his comments on the Indian military operation against terror hubs in Pakistan and PoK in aftermath of massacre of tourists at Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir in April.
Talking to reporters in Pune on Tuesday, Chavan claimed India faced a "total defeat in the aerial fight (with Pakistan) on May 7 which lasted for half-an-hour".
"One may believe this or not. After that the Indian Air Force got grounded and not a single aircraft took flight that day.... be it Gwalior, Bhatinda or Sirsa, there was a possibility of aircraft being shot down, so our complete Air Force was grounded," the former Maharashtra chief minister had said.
Hitting out at Chavan, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde accused the Congress of speaking the language of Pakistan. He said questioning the military action was akin to demoralising the morale of armed forces.
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"The criticism does not stem from the love of the nation, but love for Pakistan," said the chief leader of the Shiv Sena, a key constituent of the BJP-led NDA.
Chavan, however, remained defiant.
"There is no question of apologising. The Constitution has given me the right to ask questions," the Congress veteran asserted.
Chavan also questioned the need of having a 12-lakh strong Army when future wars will be about aerial combats and missiles. "During Operation Sindoor we saw that there was no movement of the Army even for a kilometre," he had said.
BJP Lok Sabha MP and spokesperson Sambit Patra said Chavan's remarks are loaded with sedition.
"He (Chavan) has refused to apologise. The Indian armed forces struck 100 kms inside the Pakistan territory and destroyed 11 air strips (of the Pakistani Air Force). He made remarks that the Indian Army did not even move an inch (during the military operation). This is nothing but a statement full of sedition, a statement of a traitor," Patra said, lashing out at the Congress leader.
The BJP spokesperson maintained the Congress appears to be standing with Chavan and alleged the Opposition party is playing into foreign hands.
Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra should apologise for it, he added.
Union minister Giriraj Singh of the BJP insisted it was not right to devalue the valour of Indian armed forces.
Samajwadi Party MP Virendra Singh suggested that wherever armed forces are concerned, every Indian should be mindful of statements they make and ensure their comments do not demoralise the military.
Operation Sindoor was a result of "mistakes of politicians", he claimed.
TDP MP Krishna Devraylu said after the poll defeat in Bihar, the Congress is rattled and their leaders have been talking absurdly.
"Chavan's remarks are a prime example of this. This kind of disrespect to our armed forces is not necessary. If the Congress is angry with the NDA, it should show it in a different way and not drag armed forces into it," Devraylu opined.
AAP MP Ashok Mittal said such statements should not be made by any senior politician, especially by someone who has been a former chief minister.
The Indian armed forces registered a strong victory and destroyed terror launchpads in Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, Mittal added.
