IIT-B alumnus Aphale named Ram temple trust’s first secretary, will oversee transactions

LUCKNOW: IIT Bombay alumnus Jagdish Aphale has been appointed Ayodhya Ram temple trust’s first secretary and made a joint signatory to financial transactions as the organisation seeks to infuse accountability into its functioning and ride out the storm triggered by alleged theft of donations to the shrine.“For banking purposes, the joint signatories are me and Aphale. The board of trustees has approved it,” interim general secretary Krishna Mohan told TOI .Formal approval was necessary because the trust deed requires its accounts to be operated by two individuals designated by the board. Three PSBs — SBI, Punjab National Bank and Bank of Baroda — had been reluctant to accept Aphale as a co-signatory for the trust’s accounts without a change in its constitution.Aphale, who had supervised construction at the temple complex for nearly four years as a project engineer, will also assist the board as an external expert, sources said. He has been privy to the trust’s internal processes over the past fortnight as part of his integration.His name was proposed at the trust’s July 6 meeting, held soon after it accepted the resignations of former general secretary Champat Rai and member Anil Mishra.Get the latest India News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.