15 trustees in Ram Temple trust; one to be Dalit, says HM Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday announced that the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra, set up by the government for construction of a temple in Ayodhya, will have 15 trustees and one of them will be from the Dalit community.

The home minister's statement comes a little over an hour after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced in Lok Sabha about the constitution of the trust.

"There will be 15 trustees in the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust out of which one trustee will always be from the Dalit society," he tweeted.

Shah congratulated Modi "for such an unprecedented decision" that strengthens social harmony.

The home minister said the trust will be independent to take every decision related to the temple and 67 acres of land will be transferred to it.

"I fully believe that the waiting of millions of people for centuries will be over soon and they will be able to pay obeisance to Lord Shri Ram in his grand temple at his birthplace," he said.

Shah thanked the prime minister for his commitment for construction of a temple dedicated to Lord Ram, "who is a symbol of faith and unwavering reverence of India".

"Today is a day of immense joy and pride for the whole country," he said in another tweet.

He said as per the Supreme Court order on the Ram Janmabhoomi issue, the central government has taken a historic decision to form a trust in the name of Lord Ram, showing its commitment towards the construction of the grand temple in Ayodhya.

While making the announcement for the trust in Lok Sabha, the Prime Minister said the Union Cabinet also decided to transfer 67.703 acre land to the trust.

The Uttar Pradesh government has agreed to give five acres of land to the UP Sunni Wakf Board as directed by the Supreme Court in the Ayodhya matter, Modi said.

UP government spokesperson Shrikant Sharma said the land is in Dhannipur village in Ayodhya on the Lucknow highway, about 18 kilometres from the district headquarters.

While delivering the judgement on November 9, the Supreme Court had said the trust should be formed within three months for the construction of the temple at the site where many Hindus believe Lord Ram was born.