Centre denies existence of Rama or Ramayana

The Centre tells the apex court that there is no historical evidence to establish the existence of Lord Rama or the other characters in Ramayana.

In the midst of a political controversy over the Sethusamudram project, the Centre on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that there was no historical evidence to establish the existence of Lord Rama or the other characters in Ramayana.

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In an affidavit filed before the apex court, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) rejected the claim of the existence of the "Ramasetu bridge" in the area where the project was under construction.

The multi-crore rupee project proposes to provide a shorter sea route from Rameshwaram to Sri Lanka. Referring to the Ramayana, the affidavit said there is no "historical record" to incontrovertibly prove the existence of the character, or the occurrences of the events, depicted therein.