Ram's the Word: How Congress Had to Give in to the Temple Spirit Despite Ayodhya Snub

In the end, Ram seems to have conquered the Congress. Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra may have controversially decided to skip the Ram Temple ‘Pran Pratishtha’ (consecration) ceremony in Ayodhya on Monday, but that doesn’t mean the Congress or its state governments have been able to totally ignore the historic occasion.

In fact, Himachal Pradesh is the only Congress-ruled state to have declared a full day leave to mark the ‘Pran Pratishtha’. Ruling a state called the ‘Dev Bhoomi’ with 98% Hindu population, it was never an option for Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu to not be seen celebrating the event. But instead of going for half-day holiday like some other non-BJP states, his government declared a full day holiday.

The CM’s official residence, too, has been decked up and lit with festive lights, and pujas and havans have been ordered across the hill state. Sukhu’s PWD minister Vikramditya Singh, in fact, has accepted the invite and said he would attend the Pran Pratishtha event.

Down south in Karnataka and Telangana, however, the Congress governments didn’t announce any holiday. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah categorically stated: “Work is worship”. But even he could not avoid the Ram fervour. His government has ordered pujas in around 3,400 temples across the state. In Telangana, too, the Revanth Reddy government has promised to build around 100 Ram Temples across the state.

In private, several Congress leaders don’t see the top brass’s decision to skip the ceremony in Ayodhya as politically prudent. So while the party and Rahul Gandhi have declared that religion is a personal issue, they couldn’t avoid going to temples during this period. In fact, during his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, Rahul Gandhi has visited temples much to the scorn of the BJP.

The fact that Rahul Gandhi reacted strongly to ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogans being chanted by BJP supporters during his yatra through Assam and that he has visited many minority-dominated areas has given the BJP more ammunition ahead of the Lok Sabha elections on the mandir issue.