NEW DELHI: While AAP leaders, including Sanjay Singh and Chief Minister Arvind Kerjiwal’s wife Sunita Kejriwal were campaigning for the INDIA bloc in Jharkhand, the Delhi BJP, giving a saffron touch to its electioneering, hosted a mega conclave of Hindu priests, saints and seers on Sunday in the capital and celebrated the Hindu new year along with construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
The religious-cum-political event, just a month ahead of the polling day in Delhi, was hosted at the IGI stadium through the Mandir Prakoshth (BJP’s temple cell).
Senior BJP leaders, including Union Minister Piyush Goyal, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Dhami, Delhi Lok Sabha Election In-charge Om Prakash Dhankar and Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva were among the top attendees along with all seven parliamentary candidates of the party.
Hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Goyal said that he has worked to enhance India’s culture, faith, and heritage along with the country’s development. “It is a matter of pride that India has entered an era, which is making it prosperous and developed,” the Union Minister said.
Notably, the entire venue, even the chairs, wore the saffron look as the organisers had placed thousands of saffron flags along with the seats and the name of Lord Ram reverberated through the speakers during the entire duration of the event.
A big TV screen displaying “Hum Hai Sanatani” became the centre point of selfies and the speakers of the event encouraged the public to click their photos and upload it on social media so that “everyone knows about the Hindu new year”.
The Uttarakhand CM, in his address, described all the saints and sages present as the guardians of Sanatan culture.
“Earlier, there used to be indifference regarding the celebration of Hindu New Year, which was mainly due to the government before 2014, which had no special inclination towards any Hindu festival, but now the promotion of Sanatan culture is happening. Lord Shri Ram has reached his grand abode from the tent, and we all have been fortunate to have his darshan,” Dhami said.
The Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said in the last 10 years, the country has seen that “our culture, our traditions, which were under attack, have been protected by Prime Minister Narendra Modi”.
“The election of 2024 will decide the future of India, and along with that, we all will keep the foundation of a developed India of 2047, and with this resolution, we will leave from here today,” Sachdeva said. In an apparent reference to the ongoing polls, Sachdeva, without naming his political rivals, said just like the Centre, Delhi should also have Ram devotee’s rule.
The national capital will go to polls on May 25 in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha election with results on June 4.