Congress’s Ayodhya Temple Turn: Wrath of Ram Devotees or Party's Pratishtha? Tough Choice for Leaders

Two diametrically opposite responses from the Congress have only ended up raising one question — which is the real one?

First, many Congress leaders were seen taking a dip at the Saryu River on Makar Sankranti to the chants of Jai Shri Ram. This was a message that the Congress was not opposed to Ram Mandir.

As the chants grew louder, the other voices in the party also raised their pitch. Leading the pack was Udit Raj who asked for an account of the money collected by Ram Mandir Trust for building the temple.

Digvijaya Singh said that the Congress was not opposed to the temple, but it was being done by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to polarise people ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

GROUND REALITY

Caught between the two are leaders who will be facing polls and may have to brave the anger of devout voters. Some have decided to defy and will attend the Pran Pratishtha like PWD minister of Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh Vikramaditya Singh. With 98% Hindu population, the decision to skip the Pran Pratishtha could have repercussions for Congress leaders from the state, despite CM Sukhvinder Sukhu’s attempt to shift the blame onto the BJP. He told News 18: “We have been sent on a 14-day vanwas by the BJP."

It’s not just about the north or Hindi belt. Even down south, in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, for example, the Ram Mandir is an emotive issue. Ahead of the polls, the Congress leaders hitting the ground cannot afford this dichotomy.

The dilemma is also borne out of the fact that the state units have been asked to organise pujas ahead of the Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha. Post 2014, the Congress, through its internal survey, realised that the perception gaining traction was that the party was leaning towards minority appeasement, which hurt its chances.

While it is a fact that the Congress cannot match the Hindutva vote bank of the BJP, in many pockets, these voters could make a difference to leaders known to be Bhakts. These leaders are in a tizzy and worried how they would face the people and explain the party’s decision.

Even Samajwadi Party’s (SP) Akhilesh Yadav has said no to attendance, but his letter was nuanced when he said he won’t attend, but will visit it at a later date. But the Congress has raised the issue of incomplete temple and missing Shankaracharyas. On both counts, strong rebuttals have been given.

The damage control and defiance by some notwithstanding, the worry is there. Is this yet another self-goal? And has it cast a shadow over the poll chances?