Accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of playing politics on the Ram Mandir, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said he has not received an invitation for the ‘Pran Pratishtha Mahotsav’ for Ram Lalla in Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya to be held on January 22.
“Don’t know if it (BJP) is using the issue for political or commercial purposes. We are happy that the temple is coming up for which many have contributed,” Pawar told reporters in Amravati.
Noting that he hasn’t been invited to the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple, Pawar said, “I visit two-three places of faith that I don’t speak about in public. It’s a private matter.”
These developments came against the backdrop of the Ram Temple trust extending invitations to all chief ministers and leading opposition figures for the ceremony.
There have been contradicting reports on the invitation being extended to Pawar-led NCP’s ally Shiv Sena (UBT) faction. Some claim former Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray has received an invite, while others deny it.
However, Shiv Sena (UBT) has said it does not need an invitation to party president Uddhav Thackeray to visit Ayodhya for the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony.
“There is no need for Uddhav Thackeray to be invited to Ayodhya. We are in Ayodhya before you (the BJP),” Sena MP Sanjay Raut said.
Meanwhile, some INDIA bloc parties, including the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India have made it clear that they will not attend the event, stating that “BJP and RSS have converted a religious ceremony into a state-sponsored event directly involving the Prime Minister.”
TMC and its chief Mamata Banerjee are also likely to skip the ceremony.
The Ram temple will be inaugurated on January 22, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and more than 6,000 people expected to attend the Pran Pratistha, or the consecration ceremony of the Ram Lalla idol.
Ahead of the January 22 consecration ceremony, PM Modi is scheduled to hold a roadshow and address a public meeting after inaugurating an airport in the temple town of Ayodhya on December 30, officials have said.
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