BJP leaders make fresh pitch for Ram temple; Babri demolition anniversary peaceful in UP

Several BJP leaders made a fresh pitch for construction of a Ram temple, while Left parties and the TMC called for upholding the country's secular fabric on the 26th anniversary of the Babri mosque demolition on Thursday, even as the day passed off peacefully in Uttar Pradesh.

The Congress, which is making a determined bid to highlight its pro-Hindu credentials, maintained a studied silence on the matter.

Union minister Uma Bharti, a leading figure of the Ram Mandir movement, "appealed" to Congress president Rahul Gandhi to support the construction of the temple to "honour" his holy thread and Dattatreya Brahmin lineage.

She was referring to the claims of Congress leaders that Gandhi was a "janeu-dhari" (sacred thread-wearing) Hindu. Recently, at a religious ceremony, the Congress president was referred to as a Dattatreya Brahmin.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, a bitter critic of the BJP, tweeted: "Just like a human body is incomplete without all organs, India is incomplete without all communities, religions, castes, creed and gender. Let us pledge to uphold the secular fabric of India (sic)."
The main litigant in the Ayodhya case, Iqbal Ansari, said: We are observing the anniversary for the last 26 years. Now, it (the wait) must end and a peaceful solution must be found with the efforts of the prime minister."
In Gorakhpur, the 'prant sanyojak' of the Bajrang Dal, Purnendu, said: "We can't have any more patience and the government should pass a law in Parliament for the construction of Ram temple."