UP Congress leaders visit Ayodhya after controversy over decline of Ram Temple invite

Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh) [India], January 15 : Congress leaders and workers, including its Uttar Pradesh chief Ajay Rai, arrived in Ayodhya on Monday to take a holy dip in the Saryu river and pay obeisance at temples there.
Ajay Rai along with party leaders Avinash Pandey, Deepender Hooda, and Akhilesh Pratap Singh offered prayers at Ayodhya's Hanuman Garhi temple.
"Today we will have the 'darshan' of Lord Ram and today is the auspicious day of Makar Sankranti and we took a holy dip in the Saryu river and will take blessings of Lord Ram..." he said earlier in the day.
The Congress leaders also took a holy dip in the Saryu river in Ayodhya.
Congress MP Deepender Hooda said that he went to Ayoshya seeking blessings of Lord Ram.
"Lord Ram belongs to everyone. This is not my first visit to Ayodhya. Today we came here to seek the blessings of Lord Ram on the occasion of Makar Sankranti..." he said.
The BJP however hit out at Congress and accused it of having 'the dual character'.
"I have no objection to anyone visiting Ayodhya Dham. People are seeing the dual character of Congress today. On one side they rejected the invitation and on the second side they have sent a delegation to the Ram mandir," Uttar Pradesh Deputy CM and BJP leader KP Maurya said.
Meanwhile, tension erupted when a few people vandalised the Congress flag outside the Ayodhya Ram temple.
Congress said that some anti-social elements allegedly snatched our party flag and abused the party workers
"Some anti-social elements snatched our party flag and abused our party workers. This is a shameful and condemnable act. The temple (Ram temple) belongs to everyone," Ayodhya Congress Mahila in-charge Renu Rai said.
Notably, senior Congress leaders -- Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury -- 'declined' the invitation for the grand event in Ayodhya, the party's general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a statement.
"Last month, the Congress President and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Shri Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson, Smt. Sonia Gandhi and the Leader of the Congress Party in the Lok Sabha Shri Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury received an invitation to attend the inauguration ceremony of the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya to be held on January 22nd, 2024," he said in the statement.
"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. 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," it added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to attend the installation of the idol of Ram Lalla at the grand temple on January 22. As per temple officials, the ceremony will be held over a span of seven days starting on January 16.
Preparations are underway in full swing for the Ram Temple 'Pran Pratishtha' on January 22, which will draw dignitaries and people from all walks of life. The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has decided to enthrone Ram Lalla at the sanctum-sanctorum of the Ram Temple at noon on January 22. Vedic rituals for the Pran-Pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya will begin on January 16, a week before the main ceremony.