Amit Shah did not say Ram temple construction to begin before 2019 polls: BJP

BJP National Executive member Perala Sekharjee briefed the media about the meeting at BJP's Telangana state unit office.

BJP Amit Shah . (PTI Photo/ File)

Hyderabad:  As per a report in news agency IANS, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah on Friday made a huge statement on the controversial Ram Temple issue and  has said that construction of a grand Ram temple at Ayodhya will begin before the 2019 elections. As per the report, Shah told a meeting of party leaders in Hyderabad that steps will be taken to clear the decks for launching construction of the temple before the polls. BJP National Executive member Perala Sekharjee briefed the media about the meeting at BJP's Telangana state unit office. "Considering the developments, I believe that construction of Ram temple will begin before the coming general elections," Sekharjee quoted Shah as saying. The BJP chief, who arrived on a day-long visit to Hyderabad on Friday, also told the meeting that the elections will not be advanced.  Shah told his party colleagues to prepare strategies to bring the party to power in the state. Telangana  BJP MLC N. Ramchander Rao, however, on Saturday outrightly rejected the statement saying, "I was present at the meeting. Responding to a question by a party worker, he said the matter is sub judice. He said personally even he wants the court's decision to come before 2019 elections." BJP national general secretary P Muralidhar Rao also tweeted calling the report of IANS "incorrect". "This report about Shri Ram Janmabhoomi dispute is completely incorrect. In yesterday's tour Shri Amit Shah ji has not expressed anything of this sort." Speaking to ABP News over the matter, Congress leader Akhilesh Pratap Singh said "BJP keeps bringing up the Ram temple issue time and again only to mislead the electorate." All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (MIM) legislator Waris Pathan in a telephonic conversation  with ABP News said "Amit Shah is not a judge of the Supreme Court to make a prediction of the temple's construction. Why can't the BJP wait when the matter is pending in court. Do they believe in the Constitution or not?"