As part of the trip to Ayodhya arranged by Uttar Pradesh Speaker Satish Mahana, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs and MLCs, along with those from the Congress, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), travelled to the temple town on Sunday. Samajwadi Party (SP) MLAs, however, remained conspicuous by their absence after party chief Akhilesh Yadav skipped the trip.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Mahana led the MLAs to the Ram Temple complex, with the CM arriving by flight from Pune to Ayodhya. Mahana led the MLAs in 10 buses from Lucknow to Ayodhya. Congress MLA Aradhana Mishra Mona and BSP MLA Umashankar Singh and RLD MLAs, travelled with Mahana.
Yadav had told the Speaker in the assembly on Saturday: “I won’t go to Ayodhya on your invitation. I will go when Ram Lalla calls me. First, I will do Shiv Aradhana, then go to Ayodhya with my entire family."
Sources say all SP MLAs will go to Ayodhya when Yadav chooses to go, and this has triggered criticism in UP. The absence of SP MLAs was also criticized by the BJP, with Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya saying, “Joh Ram Ka Nahin, Woh Kisi Ka Nahin…these are the people who had ordered opening fire on Ram bhakts in 1990."
Mahana said he had invited Yadav along with other SP MLAs but he unfortunately turned down the invite. Yadav had earlier rejected the invite for the January 22 Pran Pratishtha ceremony.
In Ayodhya, the CM and the Speaker, along with the MLAs, will visit the Hanumangarhi temple and the Ram Temple complex, where they will spend over four hours taking the darshan of Ram Lalla and having bhog for lunch in the temple complex.
The visit by the UP MLAs and Cabinet was earlier planned for February 1, but it was postponed to February 11, given the heavy rush of pilgrims at the temple complex.
Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP is mounting a political attack on Yadav for rejecting two invites to go to the Ram Temple.
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