Assam shrine officials ask Rahul Gandhi not to visit while Ram temple consecration is underway

The management committee of a shrine in Assam has urged Congress MP Rahul Gandhi not to visit it until the consecration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Monday is complete.

The management committee of the Batadrava Than in Assam’s Nagaon district said that Gandhi would visit the shrine after 3 pm on Monday. The visit will be a part of the Congress’ ongoing Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.

The shrine is believed to be the birthplace of Srimanta Sankardeva, a 15th-16th century Assamese social reformer and artist. Gandhi was earlier scheduled to offer prayers there while Prime Minister Narendra Modi would preside over the consecration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

The Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, or India Justice and Unity March, is the second large-scale outreach programme of Congress, in which Gandhi is slated to travel 6,200 km across 15 states. He is travelling in Assam from January 18 to January 25.

The shrine management committee said that on Monday, many devotees would visit the site on the occasion of the consecration.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma also urged Gandhi not to visit the shrine while the ceremony was on, claiming that it would bring the state “into a bad light”, ANI reported. He also said that there “should not...

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