Siddaramiah Defends Congress Decision To Skip Ram Temple Consecration Ceremony (image-twitter/siddaramiah)
Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday voiced his support to grand old party”s decision to turn down the invitation to the consecration ceremony of Ram temple, alleging that BJP has turned a religious event to a party event.
Siddaramaiah stated that AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge, senior leader Sonia Gandhi and opposition leaders in Lok Sabha has taken rightful decision by choosing not to participate in the Ram Lalla installation ceremony in Ayodhya.
He criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the leaders of the Sangh Parivar for turning a religious ceremony into a political one and thereby disrespecting Lord Ram and 140 crore people of India.
It is a rightful decision of AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge, our senior leader Sonia Gandhi, and the leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha, Adhir Chowdhury, to not participate in the Ram Lalla installation ceremony in Ayodhya, and I support this decision.
This religious…
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) January 11, 2024
Referring to the purported statement of the secretary of the Ram Mandir trust that Shaiva and Shaktas have no authority in the Ram Mandir, he said it has caused a controversy.
He called it unfortunate, as the event which is meant to unify has now turned into one that divides, referring to the boycott of decision of four Shankaracharayas.
Siddaramiah underlined that the Congress party always maintained the position and supported the construction of the Ram temple.
The Karnataka chief minister alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is nearing to his completion of tenth year in the office do not have courage to face the election by showcasing the achievements and thus have chosen to win the votes by hurriedly inaugurating the ‘incomplete’ Ram temple, ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, in an attempt to create Hindutva wave.
The chief minister noted that people of India has been closely watching the politics of BJP and Sangh Parivar in the name of Lord Ram and thus now will not fall prey to the trap.
“People are now questioning the accounting of donations collected in the name of bricks,” he added.
He then stated that the grand old party is not against Hinduism but is against untouchability, casteism, blind faith, and superstitions that are carried out in the name of religion.
“We are completely against using religion for political purposes,” he stated.
Taking the examples of Mahatma Gandhi, Swami Vivekananda, Kanakadasa, Narayana Guru, Kuvempu, he emphasized the importance of interfaith equality.
“Respecting and worshipping Lord Rama daily is as much a religious duty as raising a voice against those who use Rama for political purposes,” he stated.
He concluded his statement by noting that he and his party are committed to achieve constitutional goal of creating a peaceful environment where all communities could co-exist.
