Ayodhya saints upset with Trust, to hold meeting

Ayodhya: Within 24 hours of the constitution of the "Shri Ram Janambhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust by the Modi government, voices of protest have started emanating from the seers and saints in Ayodhya.

The saints are upset over the fact that the saint community has not been given adequate representation in the 15-member trust.

A formal meeting of saints will be held later in the day at Digambar Akhara to decide the future course of action, sources said.

A large number of saints began collecting at the Maniram Chavni ashram of Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, the chief trustee of the Ram Janambhoomi Nyas, since Thursday morning.

The saints had been demanding that Mahant Nritya Gopal Das be appointed as head of the new trust.

The centre, however, has named K Parasaran , the main lawyer of the Hindu side in the Supreme Court, as the head of the trust.

Mahant Nritya Gopal Das also expressed 'surprise' at the formation of the trust."Those who have made sacrifices for the temple movement have been completely ignored. This is an insult to the saints of Ayodhya," he said.

Mahant Kamal Nayan Das, designated successor to Nritya Gopal Das, said that the Vaishnav Samaj had been completely ignored in the trust. "We do not accept this trust," he said.

Commenting on the inclusion of Bimlendra Mohan Pratap Mishra, the Ayodhya Raja, in the trust, the saint said that he was a political leader who had contested election ion a BSP ticket. He said that Mishra had nothing to do with the Ayodhya movement.

Mahant Suresh Das of Digambar Akhara has also voiced his opposition to the new trust which "includes those who were nowhere in the temple movement."

Mahant Paramhas Das of Tapasvi Chavni, who had put forward the name of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat as head of the trust, had started an indefinite fast in protest at the Bilardeeh Shiva temple in Chandauli.