Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh) [India], July 6 (ANI): Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust Treasurer Swami Govind Dev Giri Ji Maharaj on Monday said that Champat Rai and Anil Mishra no longer hold any position in the Trust and that their “negligence and lack of caution for so long is a serious matter”.
The seer made the comments to the reporters after a meeting of the Trust in the wake of the SIT probe into the Ram Mandir donation row.
He said anyone involved in the embezzlement of funds should face appropriate action.
“We have read the report submitted by the SIT, and the investigation should proceed accordingly, as this was merely an interim report–not the final one. We are resolved that those who committed such an offence must be investigated; they must be punished and face appropriate action,” he said.
He said resignations of Champat Rai as general secretary and Anil Mishra as trustee have been accepted.
“They (Champat Rai and Anil Mishra) no longer hold any position. Their negligence and lack of caution persisting for so long is a serious matter; this should not have happened,” he said.
Swami Govind Dev Giri Ji Maharaj also said that the trustees themselves did not commit the betrayal.
“This betrayal was perpetrated by people whom Champat Rai ji, whom we consider a truly noble and great soul, trusted and kept close for so many years. It was those people who betrayed the Trust.”
He said the appointment of Krishna Mohan as interim general secretary was in accordance with Trust norms.
“According to the Trust’s current decision, it is an interim appointment. It could become permanent later, depending on the Trust’s future decision, but as of today, it is interim.”
When asked whether the path remains open for Champat Rai and Anil Mishra to return to the Trust after the investigation concludes, he says, “There is no such thing.”
“I used to oversee the Trust’s funds in their entirety. I did not visit personally; instead, I would send colleagues, Chartered Accountants from our Pune office who also serve as our treasurers, to stay here for five days each month. They would audit all the accounts. It was because of them that I could remain at ease regarding the situation here. So, it is not as if I was paying no attention to it; we operate through delegation–getting work done by sending others. That arrangement was functioning smoothly,” he said.
Stating that “theft is theft” and the SIT is currently investigating the Ram Mandir donation row, Swami Govind Dev Giri hit out over allegations by political parties on the issue, saying “sudden, performative surge of devotion to Ram among those who have historically opposed it is no ordinary phenomenon” and alleged that it is “driven by ulterior motives that the entire Hindu society must recognise”.
Interacting with the media after the meeting of the Ram Mandir Trust, Swami Govind Dev Giri urged followers of Sanatan Dharma to “not give credence to such baseless rhetoric”.
“Those who once fired upon Kar Sevaks and who submitted written statements to the Supreme Court claiming that Lord Ram never existed and that the Ram Setu was never built, are now attempting to lecture us on devotion to Ram. The sudden, performative surge of devotion to Ram among those who have historically opposed it is no ordinary phenomenon; it is extraordinary, driven by ulterior motives that the entire Hindu society must recognise,” he said.
“Their primary objective is to divide us and create a rift within our devotion to Ram. We, however, reaffirm our resolve to uphold and strengthen this devotion and will not allow any division to take root in our society,” he added.
He urged devotees to be aware of “falsehoods and fabrications being spread”.
“I call upon all devotees of Ram and Krishna, all followers of Sanatan Dharma, and all who hold Hindu faith dear: do not give credence to such baseless rhetoric. If you feel something is amiss or missing, come directly to the Trust’s office, schedule a visit, inspect the item in question, and judge for yourselves the extent of the falsehoods and fabrications being spread,” he said.
“This entire charade is orchestrated solely to defame our organisation, malign Ram devotees, and sow discord within Hindu society. We will not let that happen…Justice will prevail, and the guilty will be punished. We have faith in the judicial system; my earnest appeal is do not believe the rumours,” he added.
Congress, Samajwadi Party and several other opposition parties have slammed the BJP and Sangh Parivar organisations over the Ram Mandir donation row.
Swami Govind Dev Giri rejected allegations that high-quality offerings and donated items had vanished.”Allegations are made that various other high-quality offerings and donated items also vanished without a trace. We have brought the register containing the records of all these items to show you; we will present the details of all the items in question. We are going to display all of these before you today. Furthermore, we wish to inform you that we possess a register listing 2800 such items, and all of them are safe. We have brought these five specific items–which have been the subject of discussion–merely as samples to show you,” he said.
“However, keeping all this in mind, the work we undertake next will be executed in such a manner that no one will be able to find even the slightest fault with it. Our Trust is fully committed to ensuring such impeccable execution, and we have constituted a small committee to appoint specific officials for this purpose; we will continue to advance the work in this way,” he added. (ANI)
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