Thorat said, “One should live first to be able to take darshan of the deity.”

Question the timing of the announcement regarding the laying of the Ram temple’s foundation stone in Ayodhya, Congress state president and Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat on Monday alleged that BJP was using the issue to divert attention from the Modi government’s failure to take effective measures to combat the Covid-19 situation.

Thorat’s jibe comes a day after NCP president Sharad Pawar took potshots at the Centre. “Eradication of Covid-19 is the priority of the Maharashtra government, but some people think constructing a temple will help in its mitigation,” Pawar had said.

Echoing Pawar, Thorat said, “One should live first to be able to take darshan of the deity.”

On Saturday, the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust had invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lay the foundation stone of the proposed temple next month.