NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s former principal secretary, Nripendra Misra, has been nominated chairman of the committee for construction of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, in what is being seen as a clear pointer to Modi’s close engagement with the ambitious project.

The decision to get the retired UP cadre IAS officer — who worked closely with the PM through Modi 1.0 — to helm the temple building committee was taken at the first meeting of the newly constituted Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust.

Sources said the decision to assign the task to Modi’s trusted bureaucrat is in accord with the PM’s desire to construct a “beautiful and grand” temple in Ayodhya in a time-bound manner and with strict adherence to quality. A figure of authority is seen to be needed, not the least because the temple movement involves leading religious leaders who can be assertive and command heft.

Misra’s experience as an official in UP, including a stint as Kalyan Singh’s private secretary when he was the chief minister, can be expected to come in handy in steering the project which has been a key part of the party and Sangh Parivar’s agenda, closely aligned with its Hindutva roots.

Importantly, as principal secretary to Mulayam Singh Yadav (when the latter was CM), Misra had advised against tough measures in dealing with kar sevaks mobilised by VHP for laying the foundation stone for the temple at the disputed Ayodhya site in 1990.

Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, a prominent figure in the temple movement, and VHP functionary Champat Rai have been appointed president and general secretary of the trust, respectively. The exclusion of Das from the committee had caused resentment among his supporters in Ayodhya. The government had promised that the omission would soon be rectified. Swami Govind Dev Giri, a Pune-based seer, was appointed treasurer.

The meeting at the residence of veteran Supreme Court lawyer K Parasaran, who successfully argued for the title of the Ayodhya site to be awarded to Hindus, also decided to consult astrologers on when to start construction. The idea that the project should start on Ram Navami, the birthday of Lord Ram, which will be celebrated on May 2, did not find favour on the ground that scheduling the ceremony on a day when Ayodhya will be teeming with lakhs of devotees might be a logistical nightmare.

It was decided to use the bricks that were collected and brought from thousands of villages by VHP activists as well as pillars which were cast at the Ayodhya workshop, but the size of the temple is set to be far bigger than the one originally conceived.

The participants at the meeting thanked Modi for setting up the trust and for ensuring, along with the UP government, an atmosphere of peace and harmony during the hearings in the SC over the title suit.

Constitutional bodies, read courts, were also complimented for resolving the longstanding dispute after hearing all sides and in a manner that resulted in the verdict being accepted by all sections.

The trust will open a bank account in SBI’s Ayodhya Dham branch which will be operated jointly by any two of the three members: Swami Govind Dev Giri, Champat Rai and Ayodhya-based homoeopath Anil Kumar Mishra .

Gyanesh Kumar, additional secretary in MHA, represented the Centre at the meeting. Principal secretary to the UP CM, Avaneesh Awasthi, and DM Ayodhya Anuj Kumar Jha represented the UP government at the deliberations which were attended by Nrityagopal Das, Vasudevanand Saraswati, Swami Parmanand Ji Maharaj, Swami Vishwaprassana Tirth , Swami Govind Dev Giri, Mahant Dinendra Das , Vimlendra Mohan Pratap Mishra , Anil Mishra and Kameshwar Chaupal, the Dalit VHP functionary from Bihar who had laid the foundation stone for the temple.

