E-Paper
Govt orders temples to perform ‘special’ pooja on January 22
The Karnataka government has instructed temples in the state to conduct a special pooja on January 22 to mark the consecration of Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Bengaluru
The Karnataka government has instructed temples in the state to conduct a special pooja on January 22 to mark the consecration of Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Endowment (muzrai) minister Ramalinga Reddy specifically directed all Muzrai temples to perform “maha mangalarathi” between 12.29 pm and 12.30 pm, the time of installation of Lord Ram’s idol.
“I have instructed to offer special pooja in all muzrai temples of the state on January 22, when the idol of Lord Rama will be installed in Ayodhya Ram Mandir,” Reddy said in a statement posted in X, formerly twitter.
Responding to the directive, Bharatiya Janata Party state president BY Vijayendra said, “Known for its traditional opposition to the Ram Mandir movement, Karnataka Congress finally acknowledges the unwavering faith and devotion of Kannadigas to Prabhu Shri Ram. They have given directions to temples under the endowment department to organise special poojas on the day of consecration of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya on January 22.”
The order comes after the BJP held a statewide protest last week condemning the arrest of Hindutva activist Srikanth Poojari in connection with a rioting case following the demolition of the Babri Masjid in December 1992.
The Hubballi police arrested the 50-year-old Poojari, suspecting his involvement in the riots that erupted in the district after the Babri Masjid’s demolition. Poojari was 20 years old at the time of the alleged incident.
Poojari was given bail by a court in Hubballi on Friday.
Similarly, BJP had demanded the arrest of Congress leader B K Hariprasad for his statement that a Godhra-like incident might be orchestrated in Karnataka ahead of the January 22 Ram temple consecration, even as Home Minister G Parameshwara assured that the Congress government would not allow incidents like the Godhra carnage to happen in the state.
The BJP accused the Congress of orchestrating the Godhra train fire of February 27, 2002, in which 59 kar sevaks and Hindu pilgrims died. Former BJP state president Nalin Kumar Kateel alleged that Hariprasad’s statement indicated that the Congress would repeat such a purported act.
Hariprasad had argued that there was a need for adequate arrangements for people travelling to Ayodhya for the Ram temple consecration ceremony on January 22.
The Congress MLC defended his remarks, saying, “The fundamental duty of any government is to protect the lives and property of its people. When you go back to the history of the BJP, when there was Godhra and Pulwama, a lot of disturbance (happened) and lives were lost. The BJP is a habitual offender and it can do anything. In Ayodhya, it is not a religious programme but a political program. CMs of MP, Rajasthan are ‘kar sevaks’...This is my statement, not the party’s.”
