The Congress has finally decided on the Ayodhya Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha on January 22, saying it will skip the “Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh/Bharatiya Janata Party event". It has also raised the point that while the temple construction is incomplete, the inauguration was being hurried ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
These are the common grounds on which the many in the opposition, such as the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Left and now the Congress, plan to give the event a miss.
The calculation was mulled over a few days. Many top leaders felt that any benefit of Ram Mandir would be reaped by the BJP. When it comes to the Hindutva image, no one can compete with them. Even if the Congress attended the event, it would be no match. Moreover, it would run the risk of losing the minority votes.
WHY IT WORKS FOR TMC
This certainly was the belief of TMC chief Mamata Banerjee when she said no. During the West Bengal polls, the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ call did not resonate electorally. So Banerjee isn’t worried about the skipping impacting her fortunes in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
WHY IT MAY NOT WORK FOR CONG
But the situation for the Congress could be different. Just recently, at a meeting with top leaders and state leaders, UP leaders had sought clarity, saying it would hurt their chances. In fact, even now, some leaders from the state have decided to go.
It is not the first time that Congress has made a decision such as this which would hurt it. The Congress, along with other Opposition parties, had skipped the bhoomipujan for the new Parliament building as also the sengol ceremony. This had earned it the tag of being anti-Hindu.
The BJP has not let the Congress forget this.
Just as even now they won’t.
Aparajita Sarangi of the BJP told News18: “We always knew they were anti-Hindu. They are against Ram. It’s proved now. "
The Congress has responded, saying that “religion is a personal affair and mixing politics with it was unethical". The party has even accused the BJP of using Ram Mandir and religion in the past only to seek political dividends.
NOT THE FIRST TIME
Such decisions taken at the top level often leave the firefighters in the party in a fix. For instance, when right in the middle of Madhya Pradesh elections, Kamal Nath had said no to a joint rally of the INDIA front just after the Sanatan Dharma controversy stoked by the DMK.
Even now, those belonging to the Hindi heartland belt are worried about this decision of the Congress. The top leadership, however, feels that it is important to project a secular image by distancing themselves from any religious event which would be centered around the Prime Minister.
But the BJP will use it to tell the voters that the Congress believes in appeasement politics.
Rahul Gandhi had, at a public event abroad, also criticised the government for the sengol ceremony, saying that it was an unseen and unheard of event, like in the past where the Prime Minister was prostrating himself before the sadhus from the South.
However, with the BJP clearly in a mood to use Ram Mandir as an issue, will this step by the Congress lead to — na maya mili na Ram?
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