Ahead of the inauguration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya scheduled on 22nd January, CPM leader PK Biju in Kerala has asked the state citizens not to attend the Ram Lalla Pran Pratishtha ceremony even on television. He asked the citizens to turn off the TVs that day and bar children from watching the live telecast of the widely anticipated event.
According to a report by Janmabhoomi Online, the CPM leader has further asked the school teachers and local citizens to show children the picture of the disputed Babri Masjid instead. PK Biju was speaking at the inauguration of the Kerala School Teachers Association District Conference.
The leader meanwhile also criticized the National Education Policy (NEP) and said that the policy has been introduced by the Central government to ‘saffronize’ the education system and that the Governor of Kerala Arif Mohammed Khan was conniving against the state.
CPM leader PK Biju asking people not to switch on TV on January 22nd. There are also reports that KSEB is planning a major maintenance activity on that day, which may disrupt power supply across the state. pic.twitter.com/2viY6qoJ6p
— നചികേതസ് (@nach1keta) January 9, 2024
Earlier, the CPM in Kerala had stated that they wouldn’t be attending the Pran Pratishtha event in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. “Our party will not attend the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony of Ram Temple in Ayodhya. We respect religious beliefs but they are connecting a religious programme with politics. This is the politicization of a religious program. This is not right,” party leader Brinda Karat was quoted as saying.
The ceremony scheduled for 22 January will witness the installation of the idol of Ram Lalla at the grand temple. It is expected to be attended by hundreds of officials including the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The trust has also invited 4,000 saints of all sects for the ceremony.
On January 22, one of the three idols being made from two stones brought from Karnataka and Rajasthan will be placed inside the sanctorum of the grand temple. The best idol from three stones will be selected in the first week of January for the consecration ceremony.
The trust has decided to enthrone the idol of Lord Ram at the sanctum sanctorum between noon and 12.45 pm on January 22. Lakshmi Kant Dixit, a Vedic priest, is scheduled to perform the main rituals of the consecration ceremony on the day.
