Archive · 13 Aug 2026
Ram Temple Trust CEO Candidates Not Asked Religious Questions
There is a group called the Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust that looks after the Ram temple in Ayodhya, India.
The group wants to hire a new leader, called a CEO, for the first time.
People who wanted the job had to go through several rounds of questions and interviews.
The people in charge said they did not ask any personal or religious questions.
They said candidates were not asked whether they drink alcohol, eat meat, or wear a special thread called a janeu.
The questions were only about work experience, ideas, and plans for the temple.
Talented people from the army, government, business, education, and technology fields applied.
Sixteen of them were chosen to meet the search team in person in Ayodhya on August 11 and 12, 2026.
The search team will give the trust a list of the three best candidates.
The trust will make the final choice of who becomes the new CEO.
Sources said candidates for the first full-time CEO post of Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust were not asked personal or religious questions.
Candidates were not queried about consuming liquor, being teetotallers, wearing a 'janeu', vegetarianism, or attire per Hindu religious practices.
The multi-round process included CV evaluation, online interactions over several days, and face-to-face interviews with 16 shortlisted candidates.
Final interviews were held at the Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra campus in Ayodhya on 11 and 12 August 2026.
The search committee will share a panel of three names with the trust, which will make the final announcement.
- Who
- The Search Committee of Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust — Justice Permod Kohli (retd), Lieutenant General V K Chaturvedi (retd) and Dr Suresh Hawre — and the 16 CEO candidates.
- What
- Selection of the trust's first full-time CEO, with clarification that candidates were not asked personal or religious questions during interviews.
- When
- Final interviews were conducted on 11 and 12 August 2026; the clarification was reported on 13 August 2026.
- Where
- Ayodhya, at the Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra campus.
- Why
- To appoint a merit-based, transparently selected CEO for the trust that manages the Ram temple.
- Organisation
- Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust
- Position
- First full-time Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
- Shortlisted candidates
- 16
- Final interview dates
- 11-12 August 2026
- Interview location
- Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra campus, Ayodhya
- Selection process
- Three rounds: CV evaluation, online interactions, face-to-face interviews
- Search committee
- Justice Permod Kohli (retd), Lt Gen V K Chaturvedi (retd), Dr Suresh Hawre
- Next step
- Panel of three names to be shared with the trust for the final announcement
