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Uddhav will attend Ram Mandir ceremony: Raut
iShiv Sena chief and Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray will go to Ayodhya for the bhoomi pujan ceremony of the Ram temple, Sena leader Sanjay Raut said
iShiv Sena chief and Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray will go to Ayodhya for the bhoomi pujan ceremony of the Ram temple, Sena leader Sanjay Raut said on Tuesday. The Rajya Sabha MP added that Thackeray has received an invitation and the final decision would be taken by the Sena chief.
Raut also refuted rumours that there are differences over the Ram temple issue with the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi allies in the state. He said that NCP chief Sharad Pawar has not criticised the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, and three parties have different ideologies, but work on a Common Minimum Programme (CMP).
“The moment that we all were waiting for has come, but due to coronavirus [outbreak], not many people would attend. Around 250-300 people are going to be invited. The Prime Minister is going to be there for the first time. Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray will attend, but so far, the details of the programme have not come. It is known that the bhoomi pujan is in the first week of August.”
Raut added that Shiv Sena shares a “sentimental, religious and national ties” with the Ram Mandir movement.
Thackeray attending the foundation-laying ceremony of the Ram Mandir could create issues with the MVA. On Sunday, Pawar took potshots at the Centre. “Eradication of Covid-19 is the priority of the Maharashtra government, but some people think constructing a temple will help in its mitigation,” Pawar had said. Echoing Pawar, Maharashtra minister and Maharashtra Congress president Balasaheb Thorat alleged that the BJP was using the issue to divert attention from the Modi government’s failure to take effective measures to combat the Covid-19 situation.
Dismissing the rumours about a rift over the issue, Raut said, “Sharad Pawar has not criticised the construction of the Ram Mandir. When the Supreme Court gave its judgement, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi [Vadra], Sharad Pawar had welcomed it. He (Pawar) has expressed his opinion on what should be the priority in the current Covid-19 situation. This is a government of three parties, and nowhere in the MVA’s formation, it is written that we have to have a consensus on an issue. As a government, it has to be run with unanimity to implement the programmes for the people as per the CMP.”
Raut said that there are no issues within the MVA over Thackeray’s plan to visit Ayodhya. “This is not a political or a religious issue, but a matter of national pride. It is being implemented after the Supreme Court’s orders. The CMP will remain our guiding light to run the government. Whether to go to Ayodhya or not is not an agenda in the government,” Raut said.
