Mamata Banerjee (L); Cong leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi (C); and Uddhav Thackeray.
Credit: PTI Photos
New Delhi: The Ram temple consecration event has turned overtly political with Prime Minister Narendra Modi becoming the main ‘yajman’ of the ceremony – the person on whose behalf the prayers are offered – and the Opposition accusing the BJP of turning it into a “state-sponsored” religious programme.
Most of the Opposition parties have declined to attend the ceremony, with some of them saying that they would visit the temple at a later date. A look at what Opposition parties are up to viz-a-viz the January 22 event in Ayodhya, which marks the culmination of one of BJP’s agendas which started with a ‘Rath Yatra’ that ended with the demolition of Babri Masjid.
Congress: Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury have “respectfully declined” the invite for the “state-sponsored” consecration of an “incomplete” temple. Rahul Gandhi said the BJP-RSS has made it a “PM Modi function” and given it a “political electoral flavour”. Some leaders have criticised the stand but the party insists faith is personal and it is for the individual to decide to go or not.
Trinamool Congress: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee calls the January 22 event a “gimmick show” by the BJP and is holding a “rally for harmony” in Kolkata after offering prayers to Maa Kaali.
AAP: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will not be heading to Ayodhya on January 22 but said he along with his family would visit soon. Countering BJP, AAP held ‘Sunderkand’ (a section of Ramayana) recitations in various locations in Delhi with Kejriwal attending one such function. He also announced that more trains under the ‘Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana’ will run to Ayodhya soon. From Saturday to Monday, Delhi government will also organise three-hour Ramlila daily.
Samajwadi Party: Party chief Akhilesh Yadav will visit Ayodhya only after January 22, practically declining but without saying so in a politically astute letter.
DMK: The party believes the BJP is misusing religion for politics. Faith is personal. Tamil Nadu Sports Minister Udayanidhi Stalin, the political heir of Chief Minister M K Stalin said DMK does not accept building a temple by razing a mosque, as he quoted his grandfather M Karunanidhi.
RJD: ‘Nahin Jayenge’ (won’t go), RJD supremo Lalu Prasad, who famously stopped the Rath Yatra and arrested L K Advani when they entered Bihar, said about his plans for January 22. He was invited to the event.
JD(U): Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is not likely heading to Ayodhya on January 22 while the party will be celebrating Karpuri Thakur’s birth anniversary in style on the same day.
CPI(M): General Secretary Sitaram Yechury received an invitation to attend the ceremony. He was one of the first politicians to decline the invite citing the ruling BJP’s involvement in the event.
Shiv Sena (UBT): Uddhav Thackeray will pray at the Kalaram temple, where Lord Ram is said to have stayed during his mythical exile from Ayodhya, in Maharashtra’s Nashik district on the Ram temple consecration day. Party claims to be the real force behind the Ram Temple movement.
NCP: Sharad Pawar is invited but he will go only after January 22.
BSP: Mayawati has got an invite but is yet to announce a decision on attending the event.