LUCKNOW: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav is scheduled to visit the Ram Temple in Ayodhya on December 12, party sources and former SP MLA Pawan Pandey said. It would be his first visit to the temple since its consecration in 2024.
"Both Akhilesh ji and his wife Dimple Yadav ji will visit Ram Temple and also visit the Hanumangarhi temple in Ayodhya on December 12," Pandey, who has again been named the SP candidate from Ayodhya, told mediapersons in Ayodhya on Saturday.
The proposed visit comes ahead of the crucial electoral battle in Uttar Pradesh early next year. The BJP has repeatedly targeted Yadav for not visiting the Ram Temple, accusing him of avoiding the visit to retain his Muslim vote bank.
Yadav had earlier described the temple as a BJP project. However, he has also targeted the ruling party and Sangh outfits over alleged theft of donations at the temple.
The announcement came as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was in Ayodhya to participate in the 10th edition of the Deepotsav celebrations.
Yadav's proposed visit is being viewed as part of the SP's soft Hindutva strategy to counter the BJP. The BJP has repeatedly criticised the Mulayam Singh Yadav-led government for ordering police firing on karsevaks in the 1990s and has continued to raise the incident.
However, the SP has not officially confirmed the proposed visit. Akhilesh Yadav has so far said that he would visit the Ram Temple only after the Samajwadi Party-built Kedareshwar Dham in Etawah is completed and inaugurated.