Ayodhya event
Ram Lalla, the child deity. Arguments in the case ended on October 16 after 40 days of hearing.
The holy event of Kartik Purnima falls on Tuesday, when devotees will take a dip in the river Sarayu that flows through Ayodhya. Last year, the police said at least 800,000 people visited Ayodhya for the event. It usually takes around 24 hours for the crowds to disperse, but large numbers of devotees stay back for several days in the town, which is seen as holy because it is considered the birthplace of the Hindu warrior-god Ram. “This year I will definitely attend Kartik Purnima mela. Who knows if the court (Supreme Court) delivers {the} verdict around this period in favour of {the} Ram temple,” said Ambuj Kumar, a resident of adjoining Ambedkar Nagar district. “If this happens, then I will get an opportunity to place a shila (brick) at the Ram Mandir site.”
The administration said all arrangements to secure Ayodhya were in place. “We have made elaborate security arrangements for Kartik Purnima. There will be adequate deployment of security personnel across the city, including ghats,” said Anuj Kumar Jha, district magistrate of Ayodhya.
Another senior official admitted that it will be a challenge.“in view of the pending Supreme Court verdict, we are expecting more devotees this year. Due to the much awaited verdict, Ayodhya has become the centre of all activities,” the official said, requesting anonymity. The administration has formed peace committees and enlisted Hindu religious figures to issue appeals to devotees to maintain peace and harmony. Section 144, banning the public assembly of four or more people, is already in place in Ayodhya, but traditional and religious fairs are exempt. Senior state police officials are closely monitoring the accounts of 8,000 people booked for inflammatory and objectionable posts on social media in last five years. “Stern action will be taken against them if they commit the same offence again,” said inspector general (law and order) Praveen Kumar.
Tension has been building in Ayodhya ahead of the verdict and rumours swirled over the past two days of an impending ban on internet services and closure of schools. But Jha on Monday scotched such speculation, warning of action under the National Security Act against those spreading rumours.
“Schools will not be closed even after the arrival of security forces,” Jha said. Ashish Tewari, senior superintendent of police in Ayodhya, also clarified that internet services will not be banned. Hindu groups dismissed apprehensions. “It is not the first time that several lakh devotees will arrive in Ayodhya for Kartik Purnima. This year also, the situation will be the same,” said Sharad Sharma, regional spokesperson of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad. “There is nothing to worry. We have clear instructions from the top that post –Ayodhya verdict there will no reaction--celebrations or protest,” added Sharma. Experts cautioned that security arrangements needed to be tightened. “Ayodhya is a small town. Even a gathering of 10,000 people is enough to make its presence felt. In such a scenario, the onus will be on Hindu outfits to maintain peace and harmony in the town,” said Kaushal Kishore Mishra, a professor at the Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi. tion 342 and criminal intimidation under section 506 of the IPC.
The SIT was constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government on the orders of the Supreme Court in September to investigate the charges levelled by the woman, who was then a postgraduate student at a college run by Chinmayanand’s trust.