Ram temple 'pran pratistha' invitation cards to be hand-delivered to all guests

Ayodhya: Invitation cards for the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya will be 'hand-delivered to all the guests' through representatives of the temple trust and a large number of volunteers, official sources said.

Besides, various representatives of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra, members of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and their allies are also aiding in hand-delivering the invitations.

Some of the guests have already received the invitation card.

The invitation card has an imposing image of the temple and also Lord Ram. Besides the large, aesthetically-designed cards, the invitation also includes a booklet carrying brief profiles of some of the key people who were involved in the Ram Janmabhoomi movement.

Over 7,000 people are on the invitee list of the temple trust and they include cricket legends Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli, Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, and billionaire industrialists Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani.

"We have invited people from different walks of life, from space exploration to arts and some forgotten tribals to architects. Besides, some of the prominent names being among the invitees, there are several others who have made a mark in their lives. They have been invited too," a senior member of the temple trust told PTI.

Invitations have been sent out to different sects and communities for the grand 'pran pratishtha' of the Ram temple on January 22, the sources said.

Ayodhya is being decked up for the event and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the ceremony.

"We have a huge network of people and volunteers. And, each guest will receive the invitation card by hand and not through postal or courier delivery service," the temple trust member said.

Invitations were recently also sent to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi.

Party sources said the invitation cards were hand-delivered to both of them by a senior representative of the temple trust.

The trust has also invited 4,000 seers from across the country and 50 guests from foreign countries.

The invitees from abroad will also receive invitation cards by hand, a top source in the trust said.

"Similar to our network of people in India, we have volunteers in foreign countries too. We will send the cards to them from India and representatives will then travel to hand-deliver it to the guests," the source added.

Iqbal Ansari, a litigant in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case, on January 5, also received his invitation for the consecration ceremony. A representative of the trust hand-delivered it to him at his house in Kotia Panjitola near the Ram Path in Ayodhya.

Ansari, who is in his late 50s, on December 31 told PTI in an interview that the Muslim community respected the 2019 Supreme Court verdict on the Ram temple issue.

The apex court in a historic verdict settled the fractious issue that goes back more than a century, and backed the construction of a Ram temple by a trust at the disputed site in Ayodhya and ruled that an alternative five-acre plot must be found for a mosque.

Actors Arun Govil and Dipika Chikhlia, who played the roles of Lord Ram and Goddess Sita in the famous TV serial 'Ramayan', have also been invited to the ceremony.

Invitation cards have been printed in 'both Hindi and English'. Each invitation set carries the main invitation card, the 'Pran Pratishtha' programme card and a booklet on the journey of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement and people who played a part in it, directly or indirectly.

General secretary of the trust Champat Rai had earlier said family members of 50 karsevaks who lost their lives during the Ram temple movement have also been invited. Invitations have also been sent to judges, scientists, writers and poets.

He said the Ram temple complex, built in the traditional Nagara style, will be 380 feet in length (east-west direction), 250 feet in width and 161 feet in height. Each floor of the temple will be 20 feet high and have 392 pillars and 44 gates.