Let's reaffirm commitment to Constitution's secular character by declining to participate in Ram Temple event: Kerala CM Vijayan

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], January 22 (ANI): As those who have pledged to preserve and protect our Constitution, let us reaffirm our commitment to its secular character by declining to participate in Ram Temple event in Ayodhya, said Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday.
Vijayan said this was a major departure from the times when constitutional office bearers were cautioned from taking part in religious events, as it would cast aspersions on credentials as a secular state.
Vijayan said, "This is a major departure from the times when our constitutional office bearers have been cautioned from taking part in religious events, as it would cast aspersions on our credentials as a secular state. Now, we have come to a point in time when the inauguration of a religious place of worship in the country is being celebrated as a state event. Most of us have been invited to participate in the rituals, by the trust in charge of it. As those who have pledged to preserve and protect our Constitution, let us reaffirm our commitment to its secular character, by declining to participate in the event, upholding our Constitutional responsibilities," he said.
He said that the nation belonged to all people and all sections of the Indian society. He said that of late, the line that demarcates religion and state seemed to be getting thinner and thinner.
"Secularism is the soul of the democratic republic of India. It has been part of our identity as a nation right from the days of our national movement. Those belonging to different faiths and those who were not part of any religion had taken active part in our freedom struggle. This nation belongs to all people and all sections of Indian society, in equal measure."
He further said that religion was a private affair and the Indian Constitution has minced no words in stating that all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and have the right to freely profess, practise and propagate religion.
"As those who have taken an oath to uphold the Constitution of India, we ought to ensure that every person within our territories enjoys this right in equal measure. At the same time, we cannot be promoting one religion above all others, or demean one religion beneath every other. As our first Prime Minister Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru has often opined, Indian secularism means the separation of religion and state. We even have a strong tradition of maintaining that separation," CM Vijayan said.
He stressed that India should prosper further by developing a scientific temper.
"Let this serve as an opportunity to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities. May India prosper further by developing scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform," he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in the Pran Pratishtha ceremony of Shri Ramlalla in the newly-built Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Mandir in Ayodhya on Monday.
RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were also present in the sanctorum during the rituals. Devotees and guests chanted 'Jai Sri Ram' during the ceremony. (ANI)