Leaders hope development would pave way for harmony

New Delhi: Cutting across the party lines, leaders from the opposition and ruling parties welcomed the groundbreaking ceremony for the Ram temple in Ayodhya hoping that the development would pave the way for national unity and harmony.

Several leaders hailed the historic event and hoped that the country progressed further and that people follow the ideals of Lord Ram. Their reactions came on the day when Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the first brick of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Wednesday.

Hailing the groundbreaking ceremony, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi said that Lord Ram is the ultimate embodiment of supreme human values and can never appear in cruelty, hatred or injustice.

In a tweet in Hindi, Gandhi said, "Maryada Purshottam Lord Ram is the ultimate embodiment of supreme human values. He is the core of humanism embedded deep in our

hearts."

"Ram is love, he can never appear in hatred. Ram is compassion, he can never appear in cruelty. Ram is justice, he can never appear in injustice," the Wayanad MP

said.

Welcoming the ceremony, West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee said, "Hindu Muslim Sikh Isaai, aapas mein hain bhai bhai! mera Bharat mahaan, mahaan hamara hindustan."

"Our country has always upheld the age-old legacy of unity in diversity and we must preserve this to our last breath," she

tweeted.

Union minister and BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said that today is a historic and we can all feel the joy of this moment. "The grand Ram temple is also the temple of the country. It is also a celebration of India's pride, self-respect and our spiritual inheritance," he said.

Another BJP leader Suresh Prabhu termed it as a glorious moment in India's history and said, "We all are lucky to witness this

moment."

Extending best wishes to people on the bhoomi pujan function, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, "We hope the ideals of sacrifice, duty, compassion, generosity, unity, fraternity, harmony and courtesy preached by Lord Ram will become the guiding force for the country."

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot stressed that there was a need to focus on establishment of an egalitarian society based on values espoused by Lord

Ram.

"Lord Ram holds a unique place in our culture and civilization. His life teaches us the importance of truth, justice, equality of all, compassion and brotherhood. We need to focus on establishing an egalitarian society based on the values espoused by Lord Ram," he said.

Another Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said that Lord Ram epitomises justice for all, righteous conduct, fairness and firmness in all dealings, moral rectitude and

courage.

However, party's senior leader and former Union Minister Salman Khurshid is one among the few Muslim leaders of the Congress who tweeted on the Ram Mandir bhoomi pujan.

"The temple-mosque dispute was resolved by the Supreme Court and accepted by the people. The temple is welcome but it must be remembered that the court has also ordered the construction of a mosque. The Prime Minister must support

both."

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav also hoped that the present and future generations will sincerely follow the path shown by 'Maryada Purushottam' and will do good to all and bring

peace.

Meanwhile, objecting to the 'bhoomi pujan' function at Ayodhya, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury termed the event as a "negation of the secular democratic character of the Indian Republic."

"This 'bhoomi pujan' function is naked exploitation of people's religious sentiments for partisan, political purposes and brazenly violates the letter and spirit of the Indian Constitution," Yechury

said.

The consecration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya heralds the end of a three-decade long BJP-led political movement in the country, which saw the saffron party surge from a negligible presence in Lok Sabha to an absolute majority.