Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that the issue of Ram temple should be resolved with consensus, but there are other options too if that is not possible.
“I would want an urgent resolution of the Ram Janmabhoomi issue. The responsibility of law and order in the state is on us and we will fulfil our duties. If the resolution is taken out by everyone’s consent then it will be the best, after that there are other options too and whichever suits the best should be taken,” he said on Tuesday.
The demand for the Narendra Modi government to take the ordinance route to facilitate early construction of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya grew louder on Monday as several BJP leaders and Sangh outfits voiced their frustration with the judicial process “getting delayed”.
The demands were spurred by the Supreme Court deciding on Monday that the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute cases will not be taken up now, but in January.
Adityanath also asked everyone not to lose patience over the delay. “We respect all the saints and seers and honour their concerns. One must not lose patience in bad times and should face the problems with a calm mind. This is a transition phase and I think seers should participate in the positive efforts that are being taken towards resolving the issue.”
The pressure on the BJP to bring an ordinance has grown ever since RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, in his annual Vijayadashmi address, asked the government to bring a law too.
The RSS, on Monday too, pressed for the construction of a Ram temple, saying it would lead to an atmosphere of “goodwill and harmony” in the country. “The RSS is of the opinion that a Ram temple should be constructed at the disputed site. The Supreme Court should immediately decide the case. If there are problems, the Centre should bring a legislation to remove the obstacles and hand over the Ram Janamsthan bhoomi to the Shri Ramjanmabhoomi Nyas,” Arun Kumar, the Akhil Bharatiya Prachar Pramukh of the Sangh, said.
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, however, said it was a familiar story every five years before the elections when the BJP tries to polarise the issue. “The Congress’s stated position is that the matter is before the Supreme Court and everyone should wait until the Supreme Court decides… We should not jump the gun,” he told reporters.
To a question on possibility of an ordinance for construction of the temple, he said the ordinance has to be decided by the government and not by Parliament. “If someone asks for an ordinance, the Prime Minister has to respond to them, but as you know, he will not respond to any issue,” he said.