Why some Hindutva supporters are angry with Modi’s Ayodhya temple inauguration

They have alleged that the BJP is treating the Ram temple as a political event, not a religious one.

Dec 22, 2023 - 07:30

Why some Hindutva supporters are angry with Modi’s Ayodhya temple inauguration

On December 15, Champat Rai, the general secretary of the trust overseeing the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, said that the idols of the Hindu deity to be installed at the site are being sculpted by experts and there could not be any discrimination among them.

Rai was responding to criticism from Hindutva supporters on social media about the construction of the Ram temple. Many alleged that non-Hindus were involved in building the structure and sculpting idols. Some alleged that the temple had Islamic motifs.

Their objections escalated after Rai described Prime Minister Narendra Modi as an incarnation of the Hindu deity Vishnu. These developments have triggered resentment among a section of Hindutva supporters who allege that the Bharatiya Janata Party is using the inauguration of the temple on January 22 to score political points, undermining the religiosity of the occasion.

‘BJP-sponsored programme’

“It is us who started the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, but BJP is now behaving like it is the thekedaar [contractor] of the temple,” said Sunil Kumar, the general secretary of one of India’s oldest Hindutva parties, the Hindu Mahasabha. “We are delighted that the temple will finally be inaugurated but the BJP alone should not get credit for that.”

The Ram Janmabhoomi movement of...