People showered flower petals and chanted 'Jai Shri Ram' as Uttar Pradesh leaders arrived in Ayodhya to visit the newly built Ram temple. Members of both the Houses of Uttar Pradesh Legislature left for the temple town in buses from the state capital of Lucknow with the exception of Samajwadi Party leaders.
The leaders received a rousing welcome as supporters gathered along the road and stood atop JCBs while chanting 'Jai Shree Ram' and showered petals as the leaders were enroute the Ram Temple to pay homage to Ram Lalla.
Speaker of Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly Satish Mahana and Chairman of state Legislative Council Kunwar Manvendra Singh were also part of the delegation. The ministers were also be joined by UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
The Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) was assigned the responsibility of organising ten luxury buses to facilitate the pilgrimage in Ayodhya.
The invitation was sent out to all the members of the legislative bodies, however, only the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party and its alliance partners accepted the invitation wholeheartedly. Samajwadi Party declined to participate in the pilgrimage, HT reported.
BJP MLA Sarita Bhadauria alleged, "Samajwadi Party declined because of politics. All believe in Lord Ram, but SP fears that going to Ram Temple would disturb their vote politics."
Meanwhile, BJP MLA Ritesh Gupta said, "I am fortunate to get the opportunity to have the darshan of Lord Ram Lalla. After the Pran Pratishtha ceremony, everyone wanted to visit Ayodhya and have a darshan. Today, because of CM Yogi Adityanath, all the MLAs will be travelling to Ayodhya together."
BJP MLA Mayankeshwar Sharan Singh said that the entire country is happy and that the current generation is very lucky to have gotten this opportunity after centuries.