Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi consecrated it The Ayodhya Temple, dedicated to the Hindu god Ram, was built on the site where a mob of Hindu fanatics destroyed the existing mosque in 1992.
Modi, who wore a traditional gold silk dress, led the “Pran Pratisha” ceremony, unveiling the black statuette of the god at the center of the altar and consecrating it with offerings of flowers and food against the backdrop of religious songs and the ringing of hundreds of bells.
Joining the prime minister are the fundamentalist monk Yogi, governor of Uttar Pradesh, and Mohan Bhagwat, head of the RSS, the extremist Hindu paramilitary formation from which Modi hails and which supports the BJP's policies.
A galaxy of movie stars, captains of industry, musicians and athletes sat in the VIP-reserved area directly in front of the temple, while another 8,000 guests watched the ceremony from the stands on the large screens.
The temple's inauguration, which was brought forward even though construction is not yet complete, was broadcast live across the country, in dozens of Indian embassies and even on a giant screen in Times Square in New York. In a post on X ahead of the ceremony, Modi called the event a “pivotal moment that will change the course of the country's history and Hinduism.”
Rahul Gandhi: “The government decides who can pray and when”
“While Prime Minister Modi is conducting the inauguration of Ram Temple as if he were a priest, I am not allowed to visit any temple in Assam,” reported Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, who was stopped this morning
at the entrance of the Sri Sri Sankar Dev Satra Temple in Nagaon along with hundreds of participants in his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, the
March of Unity and Justice, which began on January 14 and will cross India from east to west.
The security officers who blocked him justified the stop on “reasons of public order.”
The Congress party leader staged a sit-in outside the temple entrance and let the media know that he had been receiving an invitation to visit the Sankar Dev Satra for weeks. “Now in our country it is the government that decides who can do it
go to pray and when”he reported.
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