Lucknow: Acharya Satyendra Das, the chief priest of Ayodhya's Shri Ram Janmabhoomi temple, died at the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI) hospital in Lucknow on Tuesday. The news was confirmed by the hospital.
Das was admitted to the SGPGI on February 3 and was in the Neurology ward HDU after he suffered a stroke. He was 85 years old. He was under close monitoring of the Senior Consultant of the Neurology department.
Earlier, Acharya Satyendra Das was seen celebrating the first anniversary of the Pran Pratishtha ceremony at Ayodhya Temple on January 11. The Chief Priest described the celebrations as "very beautiful."
Das was the priest of the Ram Temple on December 6 1992, the day when the Babri Masjid was demolished.
He shifted the idols to the nearby Fakire Mandir before the demolition of the Babari Masjid. After December 6, 1992, Das reportedly placed the idols in the makeshift temple at Ram Janmbhoomi. He had been the head chief of the new Ram Temple in Ayodhya since January 22, 2024, the inauguration of the temple.
Das was a resident of Ayodhya.
