Uddhav Thackeray, 18 Sena MPs to visit Ayodhya this Sunday

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray will visit Ayodhya with 18 newly elected party MPs Sunday, making a fresh pitch for the construction of a Ram temple at the disputed site there.

Thackeray will offer prayers at the makeshift Ram Lalla temple at the site.

This will be Thackeray's first visit to Ayodhya after the Lok Sabha results last month. He had visited Ayodhya in November last year.

The Shiv Sena had earlier announced that Thackeray and the newly elected MPs would visit Ayodhya before the beginning of the Parliament session on Monday.

However, the party's state unit chief Anil Singh said the visit should not been seen from the electoral lens and it was "a matter of devotion and faith".

Maharashtra will be going to the polls later in the year.

When asked about the purpose of the visit, Singh said, "Before the Lok Sabha elections, Uddhavji went to a number of religious places for darshan. Now, after the party performed well in the polls and is a part of the NDA government, he is going there to offer prayers."
After meeting Adityanath, Raut had tweeted, "Met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath today regarding the proposed Ayodhya yatra of Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray. The talks were held in a positive atmosphere and Yogiji welcomed the yatra of Uddhavji."