Ram temple on their lips, Shiv Sainiks set off for Ayodhya

IGATPURI (on board the train)/THANE: Cries of 'Jai Shri Ram', 'Pehle mandir phir sarkar' and 'Chalo Ayodhya' echoed from platform 7 of Thane station on Thursday as a special train carrying thousands of Shiv Sainiks began rolling around 2.50pm - about half an hour behind schedule - for Ayodhya, which will be a key electoral issue for the party in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
After Thane mayor Meenakshi Shinde performed an aarti of the engine, over 2,000 Sainiks, wearing saffron caps and scarfs and armed with placards, boarded the LTT-Ayodhya train at Thane to join the mega rally, maha sabha and maha aarti organised by the party over the weekend.

"We have been hearing about the government's promises to build the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya for the past few elections, and now it is high time they speed up the process," said Shiv Sena corporator Naresh Mhaske. "We will be supporting our party chief Uddhav Thackeray there and pressuring the Centre to acknowledge the determination of the citizens and begin groundwork for the building of the Ram Mandir before making any more promises in the elections," he added. Clearly, the mandir issue is part of the Sena's political strategy to show BJP in poor light for having failed to deliver on its promise to build the temple there.

The train, which picked up more supporters from Kalyan, Kasara, will reach Ayodhya by Friday night. A maha aarti will be arranged at Naya Ghat on Saturday evening at 5.15pm. "The day will start with a visit to Lord Ram's Janmabhoomi, followed by a public rally and a maha sabha with prominent sadhus. Once the discussion is complete and the end result is to the satisfaction of the people, we will return on Monday," said a Sainik on the train.

Strangely, members of the Sena's women's wing and Yuva Sena were missing on the train. When asked, a Sena office-bearer said they have been asked to lead the maha aartis planned to be held across the state simultaneously with Thackeray's aarti by the Saryu.

The party has made all arrangements, from the special train to accommodation, food and emergency services for the Sainiks. A medical team of 10, including four doctors, is travelling on the train.

With crowds of this size, hitches would not be unexpected. Ravi Amle, 38, however, managed to sort out the tangle he had landed in. He had got off at Kasara station to buy a toothbrush. He went out of the station looking for one and while returning, saw the train leave. He rushed out, took a taxi spending Rs 1,000 and reached Igatpuri station in 20-25 minutes to rejoin the train. "I was ready to go up to Nashik to get the train because I wanted to participate in the Ayodhya puja at any cost," said Amle.