Shiv Sena Calls for Law to Facilitate Construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya

Mumbai, Aug 22: The Shiv Sena today called for enactment of a law to facilitate the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya, saying the picture of Parliament after the Lok Sabha polls next year looked "uncertain".

To say the Ram temple would be built by a consensus was like Pakistan saying it had nothing to do with Kashmir and the state belonged to India, the Sena opined. It further asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to refrain from wearing a saffron headgear until the Ram temple issue was resolved.

The comments of the NDA constituent came days after Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya said the Centre could opt for the legislative route for the construction of the Ram temple if the need arose and there was no other way out.

The previous government was voted out of power as it could neither build a consensus over the Ram temple issue nor was there a decision by the Supreme Court on it, the Sena said in an editorial in party mouthpiece "Saamana".

The BJP got a majority in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and won the highest number of seats in Uttar Pradesh, it noted. Along with the Sena, several other parties wanted the temple to be built and hence, the government should not have a problem in enacting a law for its construction, it said.

"Today you have a majority in Parliament. However, the picture for 2019 is uncertain," the Uddhav-Thackeray-led outfit said. It added that if a law had to be passed, it had to be done now and the government could consider calling a special two-day session of Parliament for it.

Taking a dig at Modi, the Sena said the prime minister wore a saffron turban while delivering the Independence Day address from the ramparts of the Red Fort, even though "Lord Ram is still in exile". "The Prime minister should say he will not wear a saffron turban till the Ram temple is constructed," it added.