Maharashtra Congress leader Nana Patole courted controversy through his statement on ‘suddhikaran’ (purification) of Sri Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. He said the ‘suddhikaran’ would be done through the four Shankaracharyas.
The Congress had earlier objected to Ayodhya Sri Ram Mandir’s Pran Pratishtha, making false allegations of objections being raised by Shankaracharyas. However, both Shringeri and Dwarka Peeths refuted the claims and asked devotees to participate in the Pran Pratishtha function. Even Congress’s claim that Pran Pratishtha was to be performed in an incomplete Mandir was found to be unsubstantiated.
It is in this background that one must view Nana Patole’s statement. He reiterated the statement about the Mandir being incomplete and Pran Pratishtha not having been done as per the Shastras. Patole further claimed that PM Modi had gone against the protocol, which the INDI alliance would ‘correct.’ However, as pointed out earlier, these claims are unsubstantiated and false.
“The vigraha at Ayodhya is not of Sri Ram but of Ramlalla, the child form of Sri Ram. We will correct the mistakes and rectify the errors in the Dharmic way,” Patole further said. He made personal remarks on PM Modi and said that the PM did not shave his head as Hindus do after the death of a family member.
Congress speaking of Dharma would have been hilarious if not tragic. Rahul Gandhi undertakes temple runs only during election time. Moreover, the party leaders refused to attend the Pran Pratishtha despite getting invites from the Ram Janmabhoomi Trust. Patole’s statement is nothing but an attempt to grab some ‘Hindu votes’ and appear pro-Hindu. It could also be an attempt to divert attention from Maharashtra Leader of Opposition Vijay Wadettiwar’s statement favouring Pakistan.
In June 2023, Patole claimed that the RDX for the Pulwama attack came from Nagpur. In other words, he was blaming the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) for the attack, which is headquartered in Nagpur, though he cleverly refrained from taking names. Congress has sought to create a ‘Hindu terror’ narrative by making unsubstantiated allegations against the Sangh Parivar. Congress had sought to blame the RSS for the 26/11 terror attack that had been carried out by Pakistan.
