Pran Pratishtha ceremony at Ayodhya should be moment of national unity: Ashwani Kumar

New Delhi [India], January 22 (ANI): Former Union Law Minister Ashwani Kumar on Monday said that the Pran Pratishtha ceremony at Ayodhya temple should be a "moment for national unity around an overwhelming national sentiment" and "discordant notes at this time will only enhance social and religious cleavages".
He also said that the secular credentials of parties must rest on a firmer footing so as not to be called in question for respecting the religious sensitivities of a vast mass of people.
"The nation rejoices in the Pran Pratishtha ceremony at the grand Bhagwan Sri Ram Mandir in Ayodhya today. The occasion should be a moment for national unity around an overwhelming national sentiment. Discordant notes at this time will only enhance social and religious cleavages, that ill serve the national interest. The sensitivities of the nation and intense emotions connected with the ceremony need to be respected as a necessary condition of democracy," Kumar said in a statement.
"On sensitive moments such as the present,a wholistic and magnanimous view needs to be taken. The secular credentials of parties must rest on a firmer footing so as not to be called in question for respecting the religious and emotional sensitivities of the vast mass of the people. The republic's core values will not be diminished by participation in the celebrations in Ayodhya," he added.
Congress had "respectfully declined" the invitation for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony at Ayodhya, saying it is "clearly an RSS/BJP event".
"Lord Ram is worshipped by millions in our country. Religion is a personal matter. But the RSS/BJP have long made a political project of the temple in Ayodhya. The inauguration of the incomplete temple by the leaders of the BJP and the RSS has been obviously brought forward for electoral gain. While abiding by the 2019 Supreme Court judgment and honouring the sentiments of millions who revere Lord Ram, Shri Mallikarjun Kharge, Smt. Sonia Gandhi and Shri Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury have respectfully declined the invitation to what is clearly an RSS/BJP event," Congress leader Jairam Ramesh had said in a statement.
The CPI-M had also declined the invitation for the Pran Prathistha ceremony.
However, Congress leaders have visited the Grand Temple in Ayodhya as devotees.
Himachal Pradesh minister Vikramaditya Singh reached Ayodhya on Monday and participated in the grand ceremony in Ram Mandir.
Himachal Pradesh, which is ruled by Congress, declared a holiday for state government employees for Monday.
Congress leaders and workers, including its Uttar Pradesh chief Ajay Rai, went to Ayodhya last week to take a holy dip in the Saryu River and pay obeisance at temples in the town. (ANI)