Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi on Wednesday reacted to Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury declining the invitation to the 'pranpratishtha' ceremony of Ram Temple in Ayodhya. Affirming that she would not engage in any politics as far as the Ram Temple issue was concerned, Priyanka Chaturvedi said, “It is a matter of our devotion and I won't do any politics over this. But there is one question, there are four Shankaracharyas in the country and they too have said that they won't participate in the ceremony. Are they too wrong?...”
Taking an indirect dig at the BJP, Priyanka Chaturvedi said, "Lord Ram resides in all our hearts, minds, religion, faith, decisions and acts. There is no politics over that. The question is, who is doing politics over this?"
Chaturvedi's statements came after the BJP criticised the Congress party for refusing to attend the Ram Temple consecration ceremony in Ayodhya. "They are stuck in their rhetoric...Why take them seriously? They will regret it if they don't go," union minister and BJP leader Hardeep Singh Puri said.
Meanwhile, BJP leader Nalin Kohli said the Congress party's decision wasn't surprising as they had already denied the existence of Lord Ram.
"The Congress took no steps over the last few decades for a temple at Ayodhya. They denied the existence of Lord Ram and delayed the hearing in the Supreme Court. So, the Congress party officially stating that it is not going to attend Ram Mandir Pran Pratistha should come as no surprise," Nalin Kohli said.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Congress party said that its senior leaders including Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury will not attend the Ram Mandir consecration event on January 22.
{{/usCountry}}In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Congress party said that its senior leaders including Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury will not attend the Ram Mandir consecration event on January 22.
{{/usCountry}}“Lord Ram is worshipped by millions in our country. Religion is a personal matter. But the RSS/BJP have long made a political project of the temple in Ayodhya. The inauguration of the incomplete temple by the leaders of the BJP and the RSS has been obviously brought forward for electoral gain. While abiding by the 2019 Supreme Court judgment and honouring the sentiments of millions who revere Lord Ram, Shri Mallikarjun Kharge, Smt. Sonia Gandhi and Shri Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury have respectfully declined the invitation to what is clearly an RSS/BJP event,” the statement read.
The party's statement came amid speculations from several INDIA bloc partners over the Congress's stance on the issue of attending the consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
(With inputs from agencies)