Modi's Second Visit to Ram Mandir in 103 Days Exposes Opposition’s Double-talk on Visiting Ayodhya

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ rituals at the Ram Mandir, in Ayodhya. (PTI)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second visit to the Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir in Ayodhya in 103 days, after the historic ‘pran pratishtha’, has exposed the double-talk by the Congress and Samajwadi Party on the point of paying obeisance at the temple.

Neither the Gandhis nor the Yadavs in Uttar Pradesh have visited the temple so far. While there was speculation that the Gandhi siblings could visit the temple before the filing of nominations from Amethi and Raebareli, it did not happen. Akhilesh Yadav has turned down not one but two invitations to visit the temple – first for the January 22 inauguration and, the second, by the Uttar Pradesh speaker who led an all-party delegation on February 11.

The Congress had termed the January 22 ceremony as an “event of the BJP and RSS” and said no one needed an invitation to go to a temple. Yadav, while declining it, had said he will surely visit at a later date along with his whole family. More than 100 days have passed, but neither the Gandhis nor the Yadavs have visited the temple. Modi registered this fact as he visited the temple on Sunday and also held a 2-km road show in Ayodhya late into the night.

Timing of PM’s Ayodhya visit

As the Uttar Pradesh election enters the crucial Awadh area in the fourth and fifth phases, the Ayodhya sentiment is expected to peak. That may explain why the prime minister was in Ayodhya for the road show ahead of polling on May 20.

Amethi, Raebareli and Sultanpur are adjoining Lok Sabha seats to Ayodhya and Prime Minister Modi has already escalated his attacks on the Gandhis and the Yadavs for not visiting the temple so far, putting the opposition in a quandary over this issue.

Recently, at a public rally, he took a swipe at the Congress for skipping the temple inauguration saying: “The Congress thinks it is bigger than the Lord.” He had also said INDIA bloc allies Congress and SP had insulted Ram and did not care about India’s heritage. Further, in a recent interview, he referred to the opposition saying: “You should be proud that the people who have built the Ram Mandir, those who have also struggled for it, forget all your sins. They come to your house and invite you. And they want to start anew. (But) you also reject them.”

Cong leaders quit over decision to decline temple inauguration

A number of Congress leaders have quit the party citing how they were hurt by the party turning down the January 22 invitation. The latest was Congress spokesperson Radhika Khera, who resigned from her primary membership on Sunday, saying she was under relentless attack inside the party as she had visited the temple in Ayodhya and said she was a devotee of Ram.

Acharya Pramod Krishnan also attended the January 22 ceremony and was expelled by the Congress soon after. Other party leaders who have quit the party over this matter include spokesperson Gourav Vallabh, former union minister Suresh Pachouri and three-time MLA CJ Chavda.

This begs the question why the Congress and SP have chosen not to visit the Ram temple after January 22 – the BJP is now openly questioning this, asking if this is due to vote bank politics. Both the opposition parties find themselves in a fix over this in UP.

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