The politics around the invitations to the inauguration ceremony of Ram Temple in Ayodhya is not ending anytime soon as former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray looks disappointed over not receiving an invitation. While mentioning the people who pulled Babri Masjid down in 1992, Uddhav Thackeray requested that the event should not be made political and he could always visit Ayodhya.
“Ram Lalla is mine too. I can go anytime I wish. I can go now, I can go tomorrow. When I became the chief minister, I went to Ayodhya. I visited Ayodhya before that also. Yes, I have not received any invitation and I don’t need one. I just have one request that this event should not be made a political one,” Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray said.
While the government decided to keep Uddhav Thackeray away, his estranged uncle and chief of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, Raj Thackeray has been invited to the the consecration ceremony.
While taking a jibe at Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis who claims to be arrested for participating in kar seva, Uddhav Thackeray said, “Those who pulled the Babri Masjid down are not there today. Maybe a handful of them are. Some people may have gone on a school picnic because they were of that age at that time.”
Political drama over invitations
The invitations for the inauguration of Ram Temple in Ayodhya on 22 January have triggered a political storm in the country with Opposition alleging that the government wants to make the event political. The Ram Temple trust has decided to keep the invitee list small, which excludes Chief Ministers and Governors of states, but the top leadership of national political parties is invited to the event.
The Opposition parties are still mulling over the political mathematics of attending or skipping the event with Congress giving mixed signals when asked if its President Mallikarjun Kharge, former president Sonia Gandhi, and Lok Sabha leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhary will attend the ceremony.
CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury has announced that he will not attend the ceremony while West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has also indicated that she will stay away from the Ram Temple event.
Bal Thackeray’s role in Babri Masjid demolition
The reaction from Uddhav Thackeray comes as the Shiv Sena (UBT) is attacking the government for not inviting their leader, whose father Balasaheb Thackeray, had a major contribution to the Ram Temple movement. Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said that when the mosque was demolished in 1992, BJP blamed Balasaheb Thackeray and the Shiv Sena leader took the responsibility.
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Published: 30 Dec 2023, 06:03 PM IST