Delhi CM Kejriwal To Visit Ayodhya Ram Temple With Family, Punjab CM Mann Tomorrow

Earlier, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal expressed his desire to visit the temple later with his spouse, kids, and parents.

File photo: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal And Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann To Visit Ayodhya's Ram Temple, Tomorrow

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal along with his family members and his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann is scheduled to embark on a visit to Ayodhya's Ram Temple on Monday, 12 February. Kejriwal will be joined by his wife and parents during this trip to the sacred city, as reported by the news agency ANI.

Delhi CM and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal along with his family members and Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann will visit Ayodhya's Ram Temple tomorrow, 12 February: AAP

(file pics) pic.twitter.com/RKwXDoYBYS

— ANI (@ANI) February 11, 2024

Before the consecration ceremony on January 22, the Aam Aadmi national convener expressed his desire to visit the temple later with his spouse, kids, and parents. He expressed his desire to attend the consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple with his parents and all of his family as he claimed that the government did not send out a formal invitation for him.  He was asked to keep his schedule free on the 22nd, but no invitation was received, he said.

Samajwadi Party Skips UP Legislators' Visit To Ram Temple In Ayodhya

Legislators from Uttar Pradesh, excluding those from the main opposition Samajwadi Party, visited the newly constructed Ram temple in Ayodhya on Sunday. Residents welcomed the legislators with enthusiasm, showering flowers as they arrived in the temple town, according to PTI.

Departing from Lucknow in 10 buses around 9 am, members from both houses of the Uttar Pradesh legislature, including representatives from the BJP, its allies, the Congress, BSP, and SBSP, embarked on a journey for darshan of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya. Speaker of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly Satish Mahana and Chairman of the state Legislative Council Kunwar Manvendra Singh were also part of the delegation.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, along with his cabinet ministers, also visited the temple, where chants of 'Jai Shri Ram' resonated in the temple complex.

Deputy Chief Ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak attributed the Samajwadi Party's refusal to join the trip to their past actions of ordering firing on 'Ram bhakts', alleging it as part of their minority appeasement politics. Maurya, referring to the Samajwadi Party as the 'Samaaptwaadi Party', stated that all participants were attending as devotees of Lord Ram.

However, Congress MLA Aradhana Mishra defended the SP's decision, emphasising that individuals should visit Ayodhya at their convenience.

The Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), an ally of the SP, was also part of the Ayodhya trip.

While SP chief Akhilesh Yadav declined the invitation, Assembly speaker Satish Mahana stated that visits to places of worship were a matter of personal faith, and individuals should not be compelled to attend.

Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak also stated, "After the consecration of Lord Ram in the newly-constructed temple in Ayodhya, we (all the legislators) had decided to go for a 'darshan'." "It is a wonderful sight ('adbhut drishya'). The entire world is talking about it. The way in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made India's cultural heritage bloom, everybody is very happy and going to the temple," he said.

BSP MLA Umashankar Singh told PTI, "The SP leaders in the meeting of party leaders had urged the speaker to facilitate the visit of the MLAs to the Ram temple. SP MLA Rakesh Singh had given in writing (requesting the Speaker) to take the MLAs to Ayodhya. Shivpal Singh Yadav had also made a similar request. There should not be any type of politics in this." He added, "Ours (BSP) is a secular party. We respect all religions. Today, on the directives of the speaker, we are going (to Ayodhya). Tomorrow, if the best mosque in the world comes up there, we will go there as well. But there should be no politics over this." Minister of State for Transport (Independent Charge) Dayashankar Singh made arrangements for the visit, an official statement said.

Pradeep Kumar Singh, also known as Guddu Chaudhary, a RJD MLA, stated: "We all have faith in Lord Ram. It is a matter of faith." For this reason, we are all traveling to Ayodhya today to receive a darshan from Ram Lalla." The Uttar Pradesh MLAs had originally scheduled a visit to Ayodhya for February 1, the day before the budget session began. However, they decided to postpone the visit in order to minimise disruption to the thousands of people who flocked to the town to honor Lord Ram.