Young leaders like Aaditya Thackeray who visited Ayodhya underscore the fact that the place holds a great significance in Indian politics. Although the Shiv Sena has called his visit “apolitical”, Ayodhya has become a touchstone for either political success or metaphor of Hindutva ideology for any party.
This is Aditya’s first solo trip to the temple town. He had earlier accompanied his father and Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. Maharashtra Tourism and Environment Minister Aditya’s visit assumes significance as the opposition BJP and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) had targeted the Shiv Sena and accused it of not following Hindutva. MNS chief Raj Thackeray had announced his visit before Aaditya’s visit to Ayodhya, but the plan was shelved as a BJP MP opposed his visit and apologized to him for insulting North Indians a few years ago. demanded.
“The importance of Ayodhya, more than a site of controversy over the birth place of Lord Rama, was as a constant cipher in shaping post-independence politics,” said Professor Pralay Kanungo, Academics and RSS’s Attempts with Politics: Hedgewar The author said to Sudarshan, as mentioned in The Hindu.
political importance
The Ram Mandir movement began to gain momentum in 1989 when the Vishwa Hindu Parishad held a foundation stone-laying ceremony at the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site. The movement reached its zenith in 1991 after former Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani started the Rath Yatra from Gujarat to make people aware of the Ram Janmabhoomi issue and garner support for the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Since 1991, Ayodhya has always voted for a BJP MLA, only once when the Samajwadi Party won in 2012. In eight Lok Sabha elections, during the same period, the BJP won five times, according to The Hindu.
Recently, at a rally in Mumbai, Uddhav criticized the BJP and the MNS for “distorting” the idea of Hindutva, and also took a dig at the RSS, saying it had never participated in the freedom struggle against the British. not attended. The CM had also claimed that it was the late Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray who showed the idea of ”saffron and Hindutva” to the BJP to help it gain power at the Centre.
Aditya’s visit is reminiscent of the party’s support base regarding the core propagators of Hindutva. However, Shiv Sena MLC Manisha Kayande reportedly said that Aditya’s visit is only a “pilgrimage” and not about “showing our Hindutva”.
#watch Shiv Sena leader and Maharashtra minister Aaditya Thackeray offers prayers at Hanuman Garhi in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh pic.twitter.com/7D588cgdN4
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) June 15, 2022
Aam Aadmi Party convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had also visited Ayodhya in October last year to woo Ram devotees and allegedly show his right side. Soon after visiting Ayodhya, Kejriwal announced a free pilgrimage scheme for the temple city. His visit gained importance ahead of the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. The party has even said that if voted to power it will establish “Ram Rajya in UP”.
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati had also promised to expedite the construction of Ram temple if the party comes to power in Uttar Pradesh. The BSP’s stand is contrary to its core ideology which focuses on the Dalit vote.
Ram temple in politico-cultural area
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath recently laid the foundation stone of the ‘Garbha Griha’, the sanctum sanctorum of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, to mark the start of the next phase of temple construction. The temple is expected to open to the public by 2024.
It is to be noted that over the years, according to Prof. Kanungo, Ayodhya has occupied the politico-cultural place in the country like Varanasi, Haridwar and Rishikesh. As quoted by The Hindu, he says, “I would not be surprised if the developments around this pilgrimage site become a venue for debating singular questions on Hinduism.”
VHP president Ravindra Narayan Singh had said in December that the Ram Janmabhoomi temple in Ayodhya would develop on the lines of Vatican City and Mecca, and emerge as a symbol of Hindutva, as reported by PTI.
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