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LoP in Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi. (PTI file photo)
The Congress leader made these comments while speaking on the BJP’s Lok Sabha poll loss in Ayodhya during an election rally in Haryana
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday faced strong criticism from Bharatiya Janata Party leaders for his remarks about the Ram Mandir consecration ceremony. He made these comments while speaking on the BJP’s Lok Sabha poll loss in Ayodhya during an election rally in Haryana.
In the purported video that is being circulated on social media platform X, Gandhi is heard criticising the Modi government for turning the Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha into a celebrity event.
Gandhi stated, “You know why they (BJP) lost in Ayodhya? They opened a mandir in Ayodhya. You saw Adani, Ambani, and Amitabh Bachchan, but not a single poor farmer was there. This is the reason why they lost.”
He added, “You opened a Ram Mandir. The first thing you did was tell the president (Droupadi Murmu) that, because she is from an adivasi background, she can’t enter the temple.”
The Congress leader further remarked, “Did you see any labourers or farmers? No. It was all dance and song, with the media cheering. This is the reality.”
In January, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the Ram Mandir in the temple city of Ayodhya, which is part of the Faizabad Lok Sabha constituency. However, the BJP faced a major setback when the Samajwadi Party’s Awadhesh Prasad, a nine-time MLA and former minister from the Pasi (Scheduled Caste) community, defeated two-time BJP MP Lallu Singh by over 55,000 votes in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
