Bharatiya Janata Party leader and the
party's Uttar Pradesh in-charge Amit Shah has sparked a controversy by
raising the Ram temple issue during his visit to Ayodhya on Saturday.
Shah said that the BJP will build a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya very
soon.
The BJP leader is now facing criticism from other political
parties. Samajwadi Party leader Kamal Farooqi said, "They should stop
fooling people, the matter is before the SC. The BJP remembers Ram
temple only at the time of elections."
The Congress accused Shah of raising tensions. "The BJP is
creating tensions over the issue. However the people of India won't fall
for this ploy," External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said."
BJP's friend-turned foe Janata Dal
United has also hit out at Amit Shah for raising the Ram temple issue.
"Ram Mandir should be built either in accordance with the court order or
after mutual talks between the two communities. Who cares about what
Amit Shah is saying," JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav said.
Shah, who went to Ayodhya to attend a party meeting, said,
"Before the meet, I came to seek Lord Ram's blessings. I've prayed for
the country to be free of Congress. We will build the Ram temple and
restore Lord Ram to his rightful place."
This comment assumes importance as Shah is not only raising the
Ayodhya temple issue, but also clearly reiterating the party's promise
to build a temple at the disputed and demolished Babri Masjid site.
Though BJP has described Faizabad meeting as a 'routine thing', sources
said that the idea is to invoke the Hindutva ideology within the party
ranks ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
The move to raise the Ayodhya issue also holds importance as
there are speculations that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi will
contest 2014 elections from Uttar Pradesh. This is seen as a move to
revive BJP's fortunes in Uttar Pradesh, which has 80 Lok Sabha seats.
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