Overview
- A three-member search committee led by retired Justice Pramod Kohli submitted a sealed report naming three recommended candidates on Tuesday, September 1, after a multi-stage vetting exercise.
- The panel said it screened 5,585 applications using a 600-point online form, narrowed the field to 108 for virtual interviews, then to 17 for in-person interviews and finally to three finalists.
- The Trust will meet on Wednesday, September 2 to consider the recommendations, vote on proposed trust-deed amendments that would formalise the CEO's powers, and fill other vacant posts including a secretary.
- The CEO role and deed changes are a direct response to a Special Investigation Team probe that flagged gross lapses in donation handling and followed arrests and the resignations of senior Trust officials.
- The selection criteria included decades of administrative experience, willingness to live in Ayodhya, and demonstrated devotion to Lord Ram, and the process has drawn political scrutiny with calls for court-supervised oversight.