The Vishwa Hindu Parishad said here on Tuesday that it would hold off its agitation for the Ram temple until April, bringing an end to a churn within the Sangh Parivar and its political arm, the ruling BJP. VHP leaders also admitted that it did not want to embarrass the government.
Speaking to The Hindu, the VHP’s international working president, Alok Kumar, said the seers in the Dharma Sansad felt that raising the Ram temple issue in the middle of an election would make the issue “petty and political”.
The moratorium had been called for the election period during April and May.
Asked about the charge of being soft on the current government over the issue that could be laid at the VHP’s door, Mr. Kumar did not shy away from giving an answer. “That is for people to evaluate. As of now, we do not see any other party (other than the BJP) that was in favour of constructing the temple. So yes, we don’t want to embarrass this government either.”
At a press meeting later on the resolutions passed at the Dharma Sansad held at the Prayagraj Kumbh, senior VHP leader Surendra Jain said: “We’re putting off the protests because we don't want to make it a chunavi mudda (election issue).”
The VHP had raised the agitation for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya through the ordinance route as the legal process at the Supreme Court did not look like it would be concluded soon.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had, in an interview a few weeks ago declared that his government was not in favour of an ordinance before the legal process was concluded.
The announcement by the VHP will come as a relief to the Modi government that wants to set its house in order specifically within its ideological family. The Union government has earlier, to signal its intent to construct the temple had applied to the Supreme Court to vacate the stay on the undisputed land for construction. Sources said that this move had been taken on board while taking the decision.