Ram Temple issue of faith, Sabarimala about customs: Chidambaram

The Ram temple issue is about "faith" and Sabarimala is about "customs" and the two should not be mixed, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said Friday.

His comments came during the launch of his new book "Undaunted: Saving the Idea of India", a collection of his essays published last year, at the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library here.

"Ram temple is not an issue of customs, it is an issue of faith. While Sabarimala is a matter of customs which are opposed to modern constitutional values," the former Union minister of finance and home said in response to a question on the two issues.

In Ayodhya, and not to trivialise the faith of those who believe in Lord Ram and his birthplace, it is a matter of faith, he said.

"And, it is because of that, a group of people are claiming the land. Others are saying a mosque existed several hundred years ago."