Pray from your homes only, VHP tells devotees
Cancelling Ramnavami Pakhvada celebrations, including shobhabyatra and other events across country, in the wake of
Covid-19 scare, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has asked devotees to perform pujas and other rituals at their respective homes and local temples.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Thursday appealed the nation to refrain from social gatherings to check the spread of the virus, which has so far infected more than 220 people and leaving four people dead.
After the Supreme Court’s verdict on the politically sensitive Ramjanambhoomi-Babri Masjid title suit, grand celebrations were planned across the country — especially in Ayodhya for the ‘Shri Ram Mahotsav’ — from March 25 to April 8.
Ramvavami is on April
2. On March 25 — the onset of auspicious Chaitra Navratri — Ramlala idols in Ayodhya will be shifted from the makeshift temple to a nearby building, where they will be kept in a fibre glass structure. Earlier, the shifting of the idols ceremony was to be celebrated in a big way where chief minister Yogi Adityanath was to be present. But now, the celebrations have been curtailed in the wake of coronavirus. Also, the UP government has already banned mass gathering events in the state.
Though the chief minister will be present on the occasion, only a couple of
● The Prime Minister had on Thursday appealed the nation to refrain from social gatherings to check the spread of the virus, which has so far infected more than 220 people.
priests will perform the rituals and representatives of the apex court mandated Ramjanambhoomi trust will be present for the ceremony at wee hours on March 25.
However, the UP government is yet to officially issue a separate notice against celebration on Ram Navmi in Ayodhya, an annual event where lakhs of devotees visit from across the country.
The VHP has also roped in seers and head priests to appeal to devotees to avoid social gatherings.
After Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to the nation, the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh affiliated VHP on Friday issued an official statement asking its cadre and Hindu devotees to refrain from hosting any social gathering or holding any procession to celebrate the Ram Mahotsav. Asking devotees to pray at home or at a nearby temple, the VHP has also asked them to chant ‘VijayMahaMantra’ and hoist saffron flags atop their homes.
Asking Rambhakts to follow cleanliness and hygiene and all health related instructions as issued by the Centre and the state governments, the VHP has appealed to its karyakartas to “protect the health of the society along with theirs.”