The Uttar Pradesh government has hiked the salaries of Ram Lalla, the head priest, and eight other staff members of the makeshift temple at the Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya, the Times of India reported.
Ram Lalla – the infant avatar of Lord Ram – gets a salary for expenditure on outfits, bathing and prasad, and electricity and water supplies of the temple.
A caretaker priest has been appointed by the Supreme Court since the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992. The priest takes care of the makeshift temple and Ram Lalla.
The monthly allowance of Ram Lalla, according to the TOI report, has been increased from Rs 26,200 to Rs 30,000. Satyendra Das, the caretaker priest, will now get Rs 13,000 a month and the eight members of the temple will get a hike of Rs 500 in their monthly salaries.
The report said that the government has also raised the allowance for prasad by Rs 800 a month as well.
Ayodhya divisional commissioner Manoj Misra was quoted by TOI as saying that the changes should not be seen as an attempt to influence the Ayodhya hearing.
(With inputs from The Times of India)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)