Kohli, Tendulkar Among 8,000 Invitees For 'Pran Pratishtha' Ceremony At Ram Temple: Report

Around 8,000 dignitaries from all walks of life, including nearly 6,000 religious leaders, have been sent invitations for the January 22 consecration ceremony of Ram Lalla.

Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli are among 8,000 dignitaries invited to the ceremony

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The Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is leaving no stone unturned to make the consecration ceremony of 'Ram Lalla' at the Ram temple in Ayodhya a grand affair as personalities like Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar, Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar have been invited.

Around 8,000 dignitaries from all walks of life, including nearly 6,000 religious leaders, have been sent invitations for the January 22 ceremony that will also be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a report in The Print said.

A senior VHP leader said those invited to the 'pran pratishtha' ceremony would be sent a link to register. Upon registration, a bar code will be generated and will serve as the entry pass.

Other dignitaries invited to the ceremony include industrialists Gautam Adani, Mukesh Ambani and Ratan Tata. VHP sources told The Print that civil servants, retired Army officers, lawyers, scientists, poets, musicians and Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan recipients have also been sent invitations.

The VHP leader also said the families of nearly 50 karsevaks who died in police firing  near the Ram Janmabhoomi site during their demonstration in 1990 have been invited. The police firing on karsevaks during the regime of Mulayam Singh Yadav killed nearly 45-50 people. 

"How can we forget the sacrifice of our karsevaks who gave their lives for the temple? We have invited their families to take part in the pran pratistha," the leader told The Print.

A separate team of VHP members has been formed to look into their food and accommodation arrangements. The family members will be housed in three tent cities erected by the trust. Open kitchen facilities will also be made available.

'Ram Lalla' Idol Almost Ready: Trust Secretary

Champat Rai, general decretary of the Shri Ram Janambhoomi Trust, said that Ram Lalla -- the idol depicting the child form of Lord Ram -- was 90 per cent ready and would be installed in the 'Grabhgriha' on the ground floor of the temple.

"A 4'3'' idol depicting the 5-year-old child form of Lord Ram is being constructed at three locations in Ayodhya. Three artisans are building the idol on three different pieces of stone, and one of the idols will be accepted by the Lord. These idols are 90 percent ready, and the finishing work will take about a week to be done," ANI quoted Rai as saying.

Vedic rituals for the consecration ceremony of the Ram Lalla idol at Ram temple will begin on January 16.