New Delhi: The BJP wants the Ram temple in Ayodhya to be constructed at the earliest, its president Amit Shah asserted at the party's national convention on Friday and accused the Congress of putting "hurdles" in resolution of the issue.
Shah's reiteration of the party's stand on the issue in his inaugural address drew the most enthusiastic response from thousands of its members at Ramlila Maidan, underscoring its resonance with the saffron party's rank and file.
"The Bharatiya Janata Party wants the Ram temple constructed at the earliest at the same site. It is our duty Let there be no doubt," Shah said.
He asserted that the party is making all efforts to ensure that the matter is resolved in the Supreme Court as soon as possible.
The court is adjudicating on the Ram temple title case and has fixed January 29 as the next date of hearing.
Accusing the Congress of creating hurdles in early resolution of the matter in the court, Shah asked the opposition party to make its stand clear on the matter. In presence of top party leaders at the convention including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Shah said the BJP wants the issue to be resolved constitutionally.
Hindutva organisations, including the RSS, have repeatedly expressed their frustration at the "delay" in the case and have demanded that the Modi government bring a law to pave the way for the temple's construction at the site in Ayodhya, considered to be the birth place of Lord Ram.
Projecting the Lok Sabha polls as a clash of ideologies and likening it to the third battle of Panipat between Marathas and the Afghan army, Shah said the election results will be equally significant for the country.
He dismissed the proposed grand alliance of opposition parties against the BJP as a "sham", saying they are a disparate group with neither a leader nor any policy and have been brought together by their greed of power.
The BJP must win the elections to pursue its agenda of cultural nationalism and the poor's welfare, he said.
In his speech, which lasted over an hour, Shah repeatedly emphasised the significance of the upcoming polls, stressed on a number of Modi government's measures- especially those related to security, curbing corruption and welfare programmes- and hit out at the Congress for its dare to target Modi on the issue of graft when its president Rahul Gandhi is on bail in a "case of corruption".
"Nobody other than Modi can give a strong government," Shah said, adding that it will be an election to give stability to the country's development and the party's expansion.
Opposition parties know that it is impossible to "defeat" Modi, who has emerged as the "nucleus" of politics like the Congress was for many decades, he said, claiming that people continue to stand behind the prime minister like a rock and that the BJP is sure to win under him.
Underlining the election's significance, he said battles are of different kinds; consequences of some are confined to win and defeated, of some others are felt for a decade of so while of some others are felt for centuries.
"I believe the 2019 battle is going to be like this," he said, drawing a parallel with the third battle of Panipat. "This is an example in history which matches with the situation today," he said, asserting that it is a must for the party to win the polls.
“Under king Shivaji, Marathas had started freeing different parts of India and won over 131 battles under various kings before losing the third battle of Panipat. It was not merely a loss in one battle... India was sunk in slavery for 200 years and the English ruled it for two countries. It was a decisive battle," he said.
Noting that from six states in 2014, when it came to power at the Centre, the BJP is ruling 16 states now, he said it will rule south India and form its government in Kerala if the Modi government is re-elected.
Amid a growing challenge from opposition parties and the BJP's defeat in the recent state polls, Shah sought to reassure the party cadres about its prospects in the general elections, saying he knew Modi since 1987 and not a single election has been lost under him.
Mocking the "bua-bhatija" alliance of Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party and Mayawati's BSP, he said they could not stand each other but have now joined hands due to the BJP's fear.
Referring to the passage of a bill in Parliament to give 10 per cent quota to the general category poor, Shah said the Modi government has "fulfilled" the dreams of crores of youths and described the constitution amendment bill as one of the most important legislations passed by Parliament.
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