PM Narendra Modi was in Pilibhit to bolster support for BJP candidate Jitin Prasad
BJP veteran Kalyan Singh, who was the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh at the time of the Babri Masjid demolition in 1992, "dedicated his life and government" to the cause of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today.
Addressing a BJP rally in Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit in support of party candidate Jitin Prasada, the Prime Minister said, "Our Kalyan Singh ji dedicated his life and government for the Ram Temple. Every family of the country contributed (to the temple). But those in the INDI alliance have always hated construction of the Ram temple," he said.
Who Was Kalyan Singh?
Mr Singh, who served as Governor of Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh before his death in 2021, was Chief Minister when the 16th century Babri Masjid was demolished by Hindu activists at Ayodhya. Hours after the demolition, he stepped down as Chief Minister. The PV Narasimha Rao government dismissed the state government on the same day and imposed President's Rule.
During his second term as Chief Minister, Mr Singh's government withdrew cases against the accused in the Babri case.
He left the BJP several times and, at one point, also aligned himself with the Mulayam Singh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party. In 2014, he returned to the BJP for good and went on to serve as Governor in two states. Mr Singh was among top BJP leaders, including veteran Lal Krishna Advani, who were acquitted by a CBI special court in 2020 in the Babri Masjid demolition case. The court then said the demolition was "not pre-planned".
The Temple Charge
The Prime Minister accused the Congress of leaving no stone unturned to ensure that the Ram Temple was not built in Ayodha. "But when people donated every penny they could and a grand temple was constructed, the temple's authorities forgave you (Congress) and invited you for the consecration ceremony. But you rejected the invitation and insulted Lord Ram. The leaders who attended the ceremony were expelled for six years," he said.
The BJP is banking on the Ram Temple construction to reap dividends in these Lok Sabha polls, especially in the politically-significant state of Uttar Pradesh. This time, the party has dropped its sitting Pilibhit MP Varun Gandhi, who raised eyebrows for his remarks criticising the government, and has chosen Mr Prasada, who switched from the Congress in 2021.
A Statue Of Unity Jab
Targeting the Opposition from the Pilibhit stage, the Prime Minister said the Congress and other INDIA bloc parties "do not hesitate to insult great personalities of the country". "No prominent leader of the Congress or Samajwadi Party has visited the Statue of Unity. They travel abroad, but do not visit the statue of Sardar (Vallabhbhai Patel)," he said.
The Statue of Unity, a 182-metre statue of the country's first Home Minister, was inaugurated by the Prime Minister in 2018 near Gujarat's Kevadia.
Hitting out at the Samajwadi Party for joining hands with the Congress, the Prime Minister also brought up the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in the aftermath of the assassination of Indira Gandhi. "No one can forget what the Congress did to our Sikh brothers in 1984. Samajwadi Party is supporting that Congress now. The BJP is firmly with Sikhs."