New Delhi: The joust for the "Hindu vote" in the Uttar Pradesh elections early next year has begun. Days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi invoked "Jai Shri Ram" - the RSS-BJP's signature chant in the nineties - in a Dussehra speech in Lucknow, the ruling Samajwadi Party has begun vying for a share of the Ayodhya pie although electoral dividends that could accrue from it are doubtful.
Tourism minister Mahesh Sharma, who represents Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddhnagar Lok Sabha constituency, will visit Ayodhya tomorrow to check out a site earmarked for establishing a Ramayana museum.
Sharma rejected the suggestion that his trip was politically motivated.
"My visit has nothing to do with the Uttar Pradesh elections. I am going as tourism minister.
"My visit is part of the government's effort to improve tourism in Ayodhya, it is part of a developmental agenda," he told mediapersons in Delhi.
The museum is a part of a "Ramayana circuit" for which the Centre has sanctioned Rs 225 crore, with a large chunk - Rs 151 crore - reserved for Ayodhya, the route's hub.
Sharma said: "Ram is in the heart of millions of Indians."
The Uttar Pradesh government instantly offered to co-operate with the Centre on the museum project and identified a 25-acre plot, which is 15km from the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri mosque complex.
The Uttar Pradesh cabinet today announced a "world class" theme park in Ayodhya's proposed Ram Lila Centre. In August, chief minister Akhilesh Yadav had green-flagged the construction of an amphitheatre and a place for singing bhajans in the temple town.
Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati - possibly with an eye on Muslim votes - promptly accused the Centre and the Samajwadi government of "linking religion with politics". However, keeping the "Hindu vote" in mind, Mayawati nuanced her critique.
A BSP release asked: "Developing tourism in Ayodhya is good. But how come the Modi government thought of developing the Ramayana Museum and the state government of the Ram Lila park before the Assembly polls?"
She said the Centre and the state government needed to be "extremely cautious" while developing the projects and ensure that the "disputed" site was not encroached upon.