Opposition pounces on Centre as Mahesh Sharma to visit Ayodhya today

Amid severe criticism from the opposition, Union tourism minister Mahesh Sharma will visit the site of the proposed Ramayana museum at Ayodhya today.

Officials said 25 acres of land has been identified by the Union tourism ministry in the Paanch Kosi periphery of Ayodhya for the purpose.

However, the opposition parties accused BJP of setting the project in motion just a few months before the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls purposefully for political gains.

The tourism minister, meanwhile, defended the move by saying that the ministry of tourism had declared a program of spiritual circuits and theme-based circuits a year ago.

"The Ramayana circuit was one, other than the Krishna and Buddha circuits and it has got nothing to do with the elections. It is a continuing process which was started about a year back", Sharma said.

He asserted that officials from his ministry had visited the place near Ayodhya two months ago and that he was going there to finalise matters keeping in view all aspects.