Several seers on Monday came out strongly in support of the consecration ceremony of Lord Ram's idol at the temple in Ayodhya, which is scheduled for January 22, amid criticism of the exercise by some 'shankaracharyas' on the ground that the temple is not fully constructed yet.
The Bharatiya Janata Party, for whom the temple town sharpened its Hindutva plank, is facing a challenge particularly from the Samajwadi Party in the ongoing state polls.
The government on Wednesday named nine out of 15 members of the 'Shri Ram Janambhoomi Teertha Kshetra' trust constituted for the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya as mandated by the Supreme Court. Here's all you need to know about the members of the trust who have been named so far.
Invitees to the 'pran pratishtha' consecration ceremony at the Ram temple started arriving Sunday in Ayodhya -- once a sleepy town now resplendent with new infrastructure and gripped by heightened religious fervour on the eve of a seminal event in India's political and religious history.
The UP CM's visit comes a day after senior BJP leaders were charged with conspiracy in the Babri Masjid case.
It was called to discuss the future course of action of the temple movement.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Sunday inaugurated its controversial yatra from Ayodhya amidst a massive crackdown launched by the Uttar Pradesh administration which has arrested senior VHP leaders Ashok Singhal and Praveen Togadia, and over 500 people.
General secretary of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Champat Rai on Monday announced that the idol of Lord Ram will be placed at its position at the 'garbh griha' of the temple on January 18 and Pran Pratishtha will take place at 12.20 pm on January 22.
Ram Janmabhoomi trust head Nritya Gopal Das tested positive for novel coronavirus infection. He shared stage with PM Modi.
It seems that the West is sending a signal to India that it can return to old hostilities unless India toes their line on Russia. It is no surprise that India is being compared with Putin's Russia in terms of targeting 'dissidents' as the West calls these Khalistani terrorists, asserts Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
The judge gave the directions after Vimal Kumar Srivastava and Manish Tripathi, representing the six accused, moved an application seeking their exemption from personal appearance for Friday only on the ground they had prior commitment.
The members include senior lawyer K Parasaran, Jagatguru Shankracharya, Jyothishpeethadheeshwar Swami Vasudevanand Saraswati Ji Maharaj from Allahabad, Jagatguru Madhavacharya Swami Vishwa Prasannatheerth Ji Maharaj, Pejawar Math in Udupi, Yugpurush Paramanand Ji Maharaj from Haridwar, Swami Govinddev Giri Ji Maharaj from Pune and Vimlendra Mohan Pratap Mishra from Ayodhya.
Union Minister Mahesh Sharma said it is the "dream" of the people of the country that Ram Mandir is built as early as possible.
'No COVID-19 positive person will be allowed when the bhoomi pujan happens on August 5 in Prime Minister Modi's presence.'
Some speakers also blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government.
'...by combining religious and political missions -- to destroy the Babri Masjid and establish Ram Rajya.' 'Hindutva was successful in creating synergy with the aspirations of devotees,' Dhirendra K Jha, author of Ayodhya: The Dark Night, tells Kanika Datta.
The following is the chronology of events related to the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute in which, after the Supreme Court verdict, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday conducted the 'Bhoomi Pujan' or ground breaking ceremony and laid the foundation stone for the temple's construction.
'The BJP is in power at the Centre and in many states. It can easily go for the construction of Ram temple, otherwise it would be considered a liar and get thrown out of power,' the Sena said in an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana.
The twin towns of Ayodhya and Faizabad were on the edge on Saturday as tension mounted on the eve of VHP's yatra with the UP government cracking down on the saffron outfit arresting some of its leaders and over 350 activists.
A court in Varanasi on Friday directed the Archaeological Survey of India to conduct a "detailed scientific survey" -- including excavations, wherever necessary -- to determine if the Gyanvapi mosque located next to the Kashi Vishwanath temple is built upon a temple.
The fresh initiative for settlement of the Ayodhya dispute, led by a former High Court judge, has been signed by more than 10,000 Hindu and Muslims.
'He also granted the temple freedom from all taxes and decreed that no one could litigate against it ever.'
"It is the greatness of Ayodhya that the mosques surrounding the Ram temple are giving a strong message of communal harmony to the rest of the world," Haji Asad Ahmad, the corporator of the Ram Kot ward, told PTI.
The chief minister will also pray at the nearby Hanuman Garhi temple on Wednesday.
He further said that time has come to discuss the issue of Ram Temple and should try to find a permanent solution.
The Congress has pinned its hopes on many of the old-timers and also given representation to some new faces in its first list of candidates announced for the Chhattisgarh assembly polls scheduled next month.
In the recent past, Adityanath and the RSS seem to have come closer. The warmth is more on the part of the RSS. And even now, not all requests from the RSS are accommodated by the UP government, points out Aditi Phadnis.
The litigants and their counsels -- altogether over 50 people -- met the three-member mediation panel on the Avadh University premises in Faizabad.
No member of the Congress' first family has visited Ayodhya since the demolition of the Babri Masjid 24 years ago, in December 1992.
Nirvani Ani Akhada president Mahant Dharmdas said that only the mela officer or the chief minister has the right to announce the "end of the Kumbh Mela".
The apex court said the faith of Hindus that Lord Ram was born at the site was undisputed, and he is symbolically the owner of the land.
With a favourable report, the ASI has vindicated our stand and now there is no looking back," Mahant Nritya Gopal Das said.
'This Sunday holds special significance for us, as we woke up to a new and transformed Sunday, with a feeling of relief that the lingering issue of Ayodhya dispute has been resolved once and for all'
A day after the Nirmohi Akhara voiced its readiness to cooperate with the Ram Lala Virajman for building a temple in Ayodhya following talks with a Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader, the man who represented the deity in the court said he did not authorise anyone to negotiate on his behalf.
'The locals want a permanent solution to the perennial Mandir-Masjid issue. They have realised political parties will lose relevance if a temple is built.'
The verdict by a special court in the Babri Masjid demolition case comes 28 years after kar sevaks razed the 16th century mosque and almost a year after the Supreme Court settled the land case in favour of a Ram temple at the disputed Ayodhya site.
On October 5, 2019, the sessions court hearing the matter had said that as per Supreme Court orders, all evidence has to be presented before December 24, 2019, which would be the last working day.
Hashim Ansari's son says the long-drawn court battle had left his father disillusioned.
The VHP is trying to gain political mileage through its October 17 programme in Ayodhya, Gyan Das, mahant of the Hanumangarhi Temple, said.
