‘Clearly an RSS-BJP event’: Congress declines invitation to Ram temple inauguration

NT Correspondent

New Delhi: Top Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Wednesday "respectfully declined" the invitation to attend the Ram Temple consecration ceremony, with the party accusing the BJP of making it into a "political project" for electoral gains and asserting that religion is a "personal matter".

Amid the buzz over the Ram temple consecration, for which the BJP and Hindu outfits like the VHP have been making grand preparations, several opposition parties have accused the ruling party of "politicising" the issue ahead of general elections.

Announcing the decision of Congress leaders in a statement, party general secretary Jairam Ramesh also questioned the motive behind the inauguration of the "incomplete" temple by the leaders of the BJP and the RSS.

"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," he said.

"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 Congress general secretary in-charge communications said.