RSS, VHP urge govt to keep temple ‘promise’
Ordinance for Ram Mandir main demand at gathering
NEW DELHI: Thousands of supporters of Hindu groups demanding the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya congregated in the heart of the national capital, where a senior leader of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Sunday reminded the government of its commitment to the cause, bringing the contentious issue into the spotlight two days before the start of Parliament’s winter session.
People wearing saffron and shouting slogans such as ‘Jai Shri Ram’ started pouring in and around Ramlila Ground, the venue for a rally by right-wing group Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), from 8am. Police said an estimated 150,000 people attended the event, which brought parts of east and central Delhi to a standstill. “Those in power today had promised to construct a Ram temple. They should listen to people and fulfil the demand for a temple in Ayodhya. They are aware of the sentiments,” senior RSS leader Suresh ‘Bhaiyyaji’ Joshi told the gathering, sending a message to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central government. At VHP’s ‘Dharma Sabha’, Joshi said enacting a law was the only option for a Ram temple, reiterating his organisation’s stand on the issue that featured in the 2014 election manifesto of the BJP.
“We’re not engaged in a conflict with any community. We are not begging but expressing sentiments,” he added. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, of late, has been vocal about the need for a law to build the temple.
Meenakshi Lekhi and Ramesh Bidhuri, BJP parliamentarians from Delhi, attended the event. Lekhi said Joshi’s remarks did not indicate that the BJP tried to stall the temple. She added that no one can imagine that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP chief Amit Shah and even ordinary party workers were not committed to the cause. “The question is how to achieve this. There have been delays in the court, and the BJP has been pleading...to expedite the hearing,” she said.
Interacting with the media in Mathura, Union home minister Rajnath Singh said the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya would be a matter “of happiness for all”. The opposition Congress party did not comment on the VHP gathering, saying the matter was sub-judice.
The Ayodhya dispute is among India’s most sensitive and divisive political issues. A section of Hindus believes a 16th century mosque, Babri Masjid, in the Uttar Pradesh town was built over a temple dedicated to Hindu god Ram, whose birthplace is considered to be at the site. A mob of thousands demolished the mosque in December 1992, triggering a cycle of violence and riots across India.
In October, the Supreme Court turned down requests for an early hearing in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute and said it will decide the course of hearings in the first week of January. The decision effectively meant that the verdict was unlikely to be out before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections expected around April-May.