HYDERABAD: The completion of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya on January 1, 2024, will set the ball rolling for the crucial Lok Sabha polls to be held next year. The opening date of the temple will be announced after the completion.
Addressing a rally at Tripura on Thursday,Union home minister Amit Shah announced:”January 1, 2024 ko Gagan chumbi Ram Mandir aapko taiyar milega (the magnificent Ram Mandir, touching the sky, will be ready on January 1, 2024).” It is not only the opening of the Ram temple but the tempo of the 2024 battle royal that will also be set by the opening of the new Parliament building and India’s presidency of the G-20 summit by the end of this year.
The home minister also used the construction of the Ram Mandir to attack the Congress, particularly, Rahul Gandhi, and said: “The Congress had been stalling the construction of the temple.” Mr Shah said it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi who made the construction of the temple a reality.
“The day the Supreme Court ruled in favour of construction of the temple, Modiji performed the bhoomi puja at the spot without any delay.” With the grand opening of the Ram temple only a couple of months before the 2024 general election (due in April-May 2024), the BJP is all set to play its tried and tested aggressive Hindutva card, sources said. By playing majoritarian politics, the BJP hopes to to strengthen and consolidate its Hindu vote bank.
Addressing the rally in Tripura, the home minister asked the crowd: “Should the Ram Mandir be constructed in Ayodhya or not?”, and as the crowd roared “Yes” in response, the home minister pressed on: “Ever since Babur destroyed the structure and ever since India became independent, the Congress was stalling completion of the Ram Mandir in the courts… sessions court, high court, Supreme Court and then again sessions court.” Targeting Mr Rahul Gandhi, the home minister remarked: “When I was president (of the BJP) and Rahul Baba was the Congress president… he would often ask, when will you announce the date (of the completion).”
Then came the Shah sting. “Rahul Baba, listen very carefully. January 1 will see the magnificent Ram Mandir being completed in Ayodhya,” Mr Shah roared amidst thunderous applause.
While the completion of the temple on January 1 next year will consolidate the Prime Minister’s image as the “Hindu Hriday Samrat”, the G-20 summit would establish him and India as “Vishwa Guru” (global teacher) on the global stage. For the BJP’s spin doctors, the new Parliament, expected to be ready anytime now, will not merely be an indelible part of the Narendra Modi era’s legacy but will also be underlining the “spirit of nationalism”. As the Opposition looks around to gather its forces to take on the might of Modi-Shah, armed with Hindutva, India’s credentials on the international stage, and muscular nationalism, the BJP is all set to plunge into the battle headlong.
…
