Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Friday said the inauguration of Ram temple in Ayodhya by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a “gross misuse of religious sentiments” for BJP’s political gain.
Speaking at a press conference, Yechury said that the inauguration of the temple represents an overt politicisation of religion, which contradicts the principles of the Constitution.
“Here, this function, the inauguration is going to be done by the Prime Minister of India in the presence of the UP Chief Minister and may be by those who hold other Constitutional positions. We feel this is a gross misuse of the religious sentiments of the people for their (BJP) political purposes. This is the open politicisation of religion which is not in consonance with the Constitution of India or the Supreme Court rulings,” Yechury said.
He said the strategy to counter this politicisation was to “strictly adhere to secularism”.
“You cannot combat this sort of religious fundamentalism of all these Hindutva offences by being a soft Hindutva or a soft saffron approach,” the senior Left leader said.
The CPI(M) policy has been to respect religious beliefs & safeguarding the right of every individual to pursue their belief. Religion is a personal choice not to be converted into an instrument for political gain. This is a State sponsored function in presence of PM & UP CM. pic.twitter.com/A9SKOq1AsG
— Sitaram Yechury (@SitaramYechury) December 26, 2023
The Ayodhya’s Ram Mandir is set to be inaugurated on January 22, which will see the presence of PM Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and more than 6,000 people who are expected to attend the grand “Pran Pratistha” ceremony.
Yechury also attacked the BJP-led NDA government on various aspects, including the Pegasus issue, saying that “this is a surveillance state that has been put in place” and it was not merely an intrusion into our privacy, which it is, but it is much more than that.
“It is a surveillance state where everything is being monitored. Even conversations,” he added.