Many of the Congress party’s leaders and functionaries are witnessing the Ram temple consecration ceremony in Ayodhya on January 22, even though the party’s leadership has denied an invitation to attend. Some have even made the decision to travel to Ayodhya.
The consecration ceremony of the Ram temple on January 22 would not be attended by Congress party president Mallikarjun Kharge, his predecessor Sonia Gandhi, and Lok Sabha floor leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury. They labeled the event as a “RSS/BJP event” in a statement. “Belief is an individual’s affair. However, the Ayodhya temple has long been a political initiative for the RSS/BJP. The BJP and RSS leaders’ opening of the unfinished temple has clearly been promoted for political advantage, the party stated in a statement, adding that it “respectfully” denies the invitation.
But shortly after, a number of Congress officials, including government ministers, declared that they would be commemorating and/or taking part in the occasion. On January 15, UP Congress President Ajay Rai traveled to Ayodhya with a sizable entourage.
According to Congress sources, this is a part of the party’s plan to appear non-averse to the Ram Temple and the Hindu religion. However, the BJP has made an effort to draw attention to this distinction between the leadership’s and other party members’ positions. A few prominent members of Congress have also publicly criticized the leadership for turning down the invitation.
34000 State Temples Are Ordered By A Karnataka Congress Minister To Hold Special Prayers On January 22.
The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department has been directed by the Congress-run Karnataka government to host special prayers at all government-run temples on January 22 in honor of the Ram Temple’s consecration.
Endowment Minister Ramalinga Reddy gave the directive, stating that the opening of the Ram Temple is a significant day for all Hindus in her explanation of the action. 34,000 of these temples, according to Reddy, are the locations of the prayers.
“January 22nd is also one such special day for all Hindus: The new Ram Mandir is being opened as the dispute over the land is now a closed chapter…. To claim that only those in the BJP are devotees of Lord Ram, and others are not is a bit too much. With or without BJP, the special Pooja would go on,” Reddy said in his statement.
The Lord Ram idol installation ceremony is set to happen at Ayodhya on January 22 from 12:29 to 1:32 p.m. There will be synchronized prayers in the temples of Karnataka.
Reddy went on to say that the Hindu faith and believers’ reverence for the Ram Temple are not something that the BJP alone can claim. Here, the BJP wants to play politics of division and capitalize on people’s love for Prabhu Sri Ram. The minister stated, “People can see the BJP’s blatant attempts to seize Lord Sri Ram’s authority for itself.”
The leader’s attempts were derided by the BJP, who pointed out that they were made just a few days after the Congress leadership’s denial of the invitation to Ayodhya. “No, this is a video showing Prabhu Shri Ram’s actual power—not a deepfake. BJP Karnataka wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “It’s ironic that the Congress Party, who is always against Prabhu Shri Ram, who is known for questioning and even ridiculing his existence, are now doing Ram Japa.”
Leaders of the UP Congress Go to the Ram Temple in Ayodhya to Pray
In the meantime, a number of Congressmen have declared that they plan to visit the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, either on January 22 or later.
Siddaramaiah, the chief minister of Karnataka, declared that he would pay his respects to Lord Ram in Ayodhya whenever he has time after January 22.
On Monday, January 15, Ajay Rai, the state president of the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh, is heading a group of more than a hundred party employees to Ayodhya.
“The Sun will become ‘Uttarayan’ (northward movement of the Sun) at 9.13 am, and we will leave for Ayodhya at 9.15 am, chanting ‘Jai Siya Ram’ after following the tradition of breaking coconuts,” according to Rai.
National-level Congress leaders, including as Rajya Sabha MP Deepender Hooda and AICC general secretary in charge of UP, Avinash Pande, will also take part in this activity.
Congress Ministers from Himachal Pradesh Thank RSS-VHP for the Invitation and Say They Will Attend
The majority of Congress leaders appear to have chosen to watch the consecration ceremony from a distance, however Vikramaditya Singh, a minister from Himachal Pradesh, has declared that he will travel to Ayodhya to take part in the festivities on January 22. The RSS-VHP has invited the Shimla MLA, who is the son of former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, to attend the occasion.
This has nothing to do with politics. Only a select few Himachal Pradeshis have received invitations to the consecration event, therefore I count myself fortunate,” Singh remarked.
He also expressed his gratitude to the RSS-VHP in particular, saying that it is his responsibility to take part in the event.
“I want to thank the RSS and VHP for inviting me for 22nd, the day when PM Modi will be in Ayodhya. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me to witness history. As a Hindu and sanatani, and believer of Dev Samaj, it is my responsibility to be there,” Singh said.
“After the SC verdict, we shouldn’t hesitate to attend,” says senior leader Karan Singh.
Senior Jammu and Kashmiri Congressman Karan Singh stated that “there should be no hesitation in attending the function after the Supreme Court judgment.”
In the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case of 2019, the Supreme Court had decided that a Ram Temple could be constructed on the property. The SC ruling was applauded by the Congress.
Singh, ninety-three, declared in a statement that he has been sent a “beautiful invitation” to the “historic pran pratishtha ceremony,” but that he is unable to attend owing to health issues.
Singh mentioned that special celebrations will be held in Jammu and Delhi on this day by his family trust.
“As a Raghuvanshi myself, and having made a modest personal donation of ₹ 11 lakh towards the construction, it would have been a great pleasure to attend…However, our family Dharmarth Trust (J&K) is organising a special celebration on this occasion at our famous Sri Raghunath Temple in Jammu, and we are also doing so on a smaller scale at our Shri Ram Mandir on Lodhi Road,” he said.
Members of the Party Reacting to the Invitation Rejection
Congress sources claim that the party leadership has not imposed any restrictions on any member’s ability to visit Ayodhya or attend the ceremony, and that everyone is free to behave whatever they like. The senior leadership decided not to accept the invitation, but to let everyone else go if they so choose, so as not to appear to be at odds with the temple or the beliefs of the Hindu community.
In spite of this, a number of Congressmen have voiced their displeasure with the party’s choice to formally reject the invitation.
Gujarat Congress working president Ambarish Der expressed disappointment over the remarks made by some members of the party, saying that “some people of the Congress party should maintain distance from that particular kind of statement and respect the public sentiment wholeheartedly” on X (formerly Twitter).
Former Gujarat Congress president Arjun Modhwadia also stated the Congress should have stayed away from taking such “political decisions”.
“This is a question of faith and belief for the citizens of this nation,” he declared.
Acharya Pramod Krishnam, a Congress leader from Uttar Pradesh, has already openly backed the Ram Temple on several occasions. Most recently, he informed reporters that India’s “Ram Rajya” would officially commence with the consecration event. “We consider ourselves extremely lucky to be able to witness the conclusion of the Ram Temple’s construction…I believe that the reestablishment of Ram Rajya in India will take place on January 22nd.”
The Congess’ choice was criticized by the leader. “This decision has broken the hearts of many party workers. This choice hurts so much.”
