BJP veteran leaders, LK Advani and Murali Manohar Joshi, who were at the forefront of the agitation for the Ram temple in Ayodhya, have been “requested not to come” to Ayodhya for the consecration ceremony of the temple next month, the temple trust said here on Monday.
“Both are elders of the family and considering their age, they were requested not to come, which was accepted by both,” Ram Temple Trust general secretary Champat Rai told reporters, PTI reported.
Advani is a founding member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. In 1990, he embarked on the Ram Rath Yatra from Somnath in Gujarat to Ayodhya to press for his party’s demand for the temple. In the general elections next year, the BJP emerged as the second largest party after the Congress.
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Meanwhile, giving more information about the inauguration ceremony, Ram Temple Trust general secretary Champat Rai said preparations are in full swing for the consecration ceremony on January 22, which will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The preparations would be completed by January 15 and the puja for ‘praan pratistha’ will start from January 16 and will continue till 22nd January, he added.
“Shankaracharyas of six darshanas (ancient schools) and around 150 saints and sages will participate in the ceremony,” Rai said.
He added that about 4,000 saints and 2,200 other guests have been invited for the ceremony.
Heads of major temples like Kashi Vishwanath, Vaishno Devi, and representatives of religious and constitutional institutions have also been invited, he said.
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Spiritual leader Dalai Lama, Mata Amritanandamayi of Kerala, yoga guru Baba Ramdev, cine stars Rajnikanth, Amitabh Bachchan, Madhuri Dixit, Arun Govil, film director Madhur Bhandarkar and prominent industrialists such as Mukesh Ambani, Anil Ambani, famous painter Vasudev Kamat, ISRO Director Nilesh Desai and many other eminent personalities have been invited to the function, Rai said.
After the consecration ceremony, ‘mandal puja’ will be held from January 24 for 48 days as per ritual traditions. The temple will be opened for devotees on January 23, he added.
(With inputs from PTI)