Ram Mandir not an election issue, says Rajnath

A day after BJP raked up the Ayodhya issue, its president Rajnath Singh today said Ram Mandir was not an election issue for the party which will contest upcoming Lok Sabha polls on the plank of development.
"Ram Mandir is not an election issue, BJP will contest the next Lok Sabha polls on the issue of development and progress," he said after paying obeisance at the Golden Temple here.
Yesterday, Amit Shah, a close aide of Narendra Modi and in-charge of party affairs in UP, after visiting make-shift Ram temple at Ayodhya, said "I have prayed that we together build a grand Ram temple as soon as possible and restore Lord Ram to his rightful place."

Talking to reporters in the holy city, the BJP president accused Congress of misleading people by describing BJP as communal.
"BJP is a secular party. Unlike Congress, which is acting on communal lines, we do not want to create any division among people," Singh said.
When asked about party candidate from Amritsar for the next General Elections, he said, sitting MP Navjot Singh Sidhu would contest from the constituency.

"Sidhu is always a star campaigner for BJP" and the party could never afford to isolate him, he said.
Sidhu was conspicuous by his absence.
During his visit to the Golden Temple, the BJP chief was accompanied by Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and former Himachal Pradesh CM Shanta Kumar.