Modi-Bhagwat meet amid mounting temple pressure
LUCKNOW: Prime Minister Narendra Modi might meet RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in Varanasi on Monday, November 12, when both leaders will be in the holy town.
While the PM will be in his parliamentary constituency to dedicate development projects worth Rs 2,400 crore apart from holding a public rally, Bhagwat will arrive on Sunday for a six-day Sangh workshop beginning on Monday.
If the meeting does take place, it will be the first such encounter between the two leaders since Modi assumed office in 2014, and comes at time when the RSS and allied outfits have stepped up their demand for the construction of a temple at Ayodhya.
A number of senior BJP leaders, including Union and state ministers who will be present in Varanasi on Monday, are also likely to meet Bhagwat.
The RSS is gearing up for a ‘Janagrah rally’ in Ayodhya, Nagpur and Bengaluru on November 25 to muster support for the construction of proposed Ram temple. Apart from the seer community, the right wing outfits including the RSS and the VHP have been mounting pressure to facilitate temple construction in Ayodhya through a law. On Dussehra eve, Bhagwat had publicly demanded the Centre to take a legislative route to temple construction.
While over 5,000 seers are expected to attend the RSS’s Janagrah rally, around 5-10 lakh people were expected to throng the temple town. The ‘temple issue is connected with the faith of millions of people,” said a senior RSS functionary.
The same day, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thakre will also visit the temple town to demand temple construction. The next edition of the rally will take place in New Delhi on December 9.
Janagrah rally
■ Over 5,000 seers are expected to attend the RSS’s Janagrah rally, while around 5-10 lakh people were expected to throng temple town of Ayodhya.