New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) The BJP never tried to take any political advantage of the Ram temple in Ayodhya though it was the party’s commitment and conviction to complete its construction, party president J P Nadda said in the Rajya Sabha on Saturday.
He said the BJP has been consistently fighting for the construction of the Ram temple, from a time when its strength in the Lok Sabha was just two to when it was more than 300.
“This is an issue for the entire nation. We never attempted to score a point from this. We never attempted to take any political advantage from this,” he said, taking part in a short duration discussion in the Rajya Sabha on the historic construction of the Ram temple and the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony.
After the Supreme Court verdict paving the way for the temple construction, the prime minister laid the foundation stone and thereafter the ‘pran pratishtha’ was held.
“But no political statement was issued by the BJP. This was done keeping in mind the dignity of the nation,” he said, adding “We never gave a political statement and took political advantage of that.” “It was our commitment and conviction and to complete that we have made every effort,” Nadda said.
Lord Ram was exiled for 14 years and in a sense he was exiled for 500 years as well, the BJP chief said, referring to the long struggle for the construction of the temple.
Nadda said Lord Ram is present in the life of every citizen and even B R Ambedkar got his image painted on the Constitution. The father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi, also had a vision of Ramrajya, he said.
“When we, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, are governing this country, we are working towards the realisation of the vision of Ramrajya. We are taking it forward,” he said.
The government is working in villages and trying to uplift the poor and empower the deprived, oppressed, exploited, Dalits, farmers and women, Nadda said.
“They all have got rights and been empowered by the policies implemented by the prime minister,” he said, referring to various government schemes.
The government has remove Article 370 and banned the practice of instant triple talaq, he said.
Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Western nations were debating over economy and humanity, the prime minister decided to go with a lockdown for the safety of citizens.
Taking part in the discussion, Priyanka Chaturvedi of the Shiv Sena lauded the late Bal Thackeray’s contribution to the Ram temple movement.
Referring to the speech of BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi, who initiated the discussion, she said the entire credit for the Ram temple is given to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“This would be an insult to the people who have sacrificed their lives over 500 years, due to which Prime Minister Narendra Modi got this opportunity,” she said.
This would be also an insult to those who fought litigation before the Supreme Court and also to archaeologists, sages, saints and others who have contributed to it.
Ashok Kumar Mittal of the AAP said Lord Ram binds the country from the north to the south. He is a symbol of unity, dedication and sacrifice.
He further said the new temple would attract 10 crore tourists a year and help make Ayodhya a cultural capital. PTI KRH SMN
About the Author
