'Lord Ram Chose His Devotee To Rebuild Temple': Advani On PM Modi Ahead Of Consecration Event In Ayodhya

In his article to be published in a special edition of the 76-year-old Hindi magazine 'Rashtra Dharma' on January 16, Advani has noted that PM Modi was with him throughout the Rath Yatra.

Ram Temple Inauguration: Lord Ram had chosen his devotee (Prime Minister Narendra Modi) to rebuild his temple, Bharatiya Janata Party stalwart L K Advani has said in an article to be published in a special edition of the 'Rashtra Dharma' magazine next week. Advani's statement comes days ahead of the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

In his article to be published in a special edition of the 76-year-old Hindi magazine 'Rashtra Dharma' on January 16, Advani noted that current Prime Minister Narendra Modi was with him throughout the Rath Yatra, news agency PTI reported, citing sources.

"He was not very famous then. But at that very time, Lord Ram had chosen his devotee (Modi) to rebuild his temple," the BJP veteran said in his article, PTI reported, citing a source. "At that time, I felt that destiny had decided that one day a grand temple of Shri Ram would definitely be built in Ayodhya," the PTI source quoted Advani as saying. He further stated, "Well, now it's only a matter of time."

In his article 'Ram Mandir Nirman, Ek Divya Swapna Ki Purti', Advani referred to the 'Rath Yatra' he took out 33 years ago for Ram temple construction and said he believes the Ayodhya movement was the "most decisive and transformative event" in his political journey, which allowed him to "re-discover India and, in the process, re-understand himself," as quoted by PTI.

The saffron party veteran, who was at the forefront of the Ram temple agitation, also remembered former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and said that he is feeling his absence ahead of the grand consecration event at the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

"Today the Rath Yatra completed 33 years. When we started the Rath Yatra on the morning of September 25, 1990, we did not know that the faith in Lord Ram with which we were starting this Yatra would take the form of a movement in the country," Advani said in his article, as quoted by a PTI source.

The consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya is set to be organised on January 22. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, thousands of seers from across the country and other dignitaries have been invited for the ceremony. More than a lakh devotees are expected to descend on the temple town on the occasion of "Pran Pratishtha (consecration)".