Despite the Bharatiya Janata Party's attempts to rake up Ayodhya as an election issue in Uttar Pradesh, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh believes moves to build a Ram temple on the disputed site should instead be led by Hindu religious leaders.

Supportive of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad's Ramjanmabhoomi resolution of last month, the Sangh has cautioned the Hindus against what it called attempts to create confusion over the temple construction.

'The Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal of the RSS calls upon the Hindus to maintain their solidarity and remain determined to achieve its goal of Shri Ram Mandir construction under the leadership of saints, disregarding the attempts to create confusion', Sangh mouthpiece Organiser quoted the temple resolution passed in the recent Varanasi meeting as saying.

It said the temple construction should begin at the earliest under the auspices of the Shri Ramjanambhoomi Nyas.

"The Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal strongly supports the spirit of the resolution 'Shri Ramjanambhoomi, Ayodhya' passed by the Kendriya Margadarshak Mandal of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in its meeting held in New Delhi on September 16-17, 2006," the ABKM said.

In its efforts to re-establish itself as a party espousing the RSS' core Hindutva ideology, the BJP has declared Ayodhya and Vande Mataram its election issues in Uttar Pradesh where Assembly polls are due next year.

The BJP's moves, however, have received cold response from the VHP, which alleges the saffron party has lost credibility over the issue because it was not able to build a Ram temple on the Ayodhya site while being in power.