KENDRAPARA: Ram Janmabhoomi movement was at its peak. Sangram Keshaari Mohapatra was 19 then and a student of Plus Three Science at Ravenshaw College. On November 2, 1990, he along with hundreds of kar sevaks were marching towards the Babri Masjid site when police fired at them.
An active kar sevak from Odisha, Sangram, a resident of Madhapur in Kendrapara town, received bullet injuries in his abdomen and shoulder. Thirty-two years hence, he is elated to receive the invite to take part in the Ram Mandir consecration at Ayodhya on January 22.
“After a long struggle and sacrifice of many for more than 500 years, we are going to worship Lord Ram in the newly-constructed Ram Temple on January 22. I am delighted I played a little role in this age-old struggle for the construction of the temple,” said Sangram.
For more than three decades, he has been waiting for construction of the Ram Temple at Ayodhya, quietly carrying his pain and emotions.
In 1990, he was present at Ayodhya and actively participated in the agitation. “I was only 19 and along with many others, I marched towards Babri mosque,” he recollected.
Near Hanuman Gadi, police baton-charged and opened fire to disperse the kar sevaks. Three bullets pierced Sangram’s abdomen and shoulder. He was rushed by some people to the nearby hospital at Ayodhya. Later, he was admitted to the district headquarters hospital at Faizabad. After undergoing treatment for nearly two weeks, he was discharged.
“I vividly remember the day as many kar sevaks were gunned down and suffered serious injuries in front of my eyes. As luck would have it, I survived even after receiving two bullets in my abdomen,” said Sangram, now 53, who now works in a private insurance company.
However, he will not go to Ayodhya on January 22 as he has some other urgent work. “But I will visit the temple after a few days of its inauguration,” he said.
Kabi Mohapatra, Sangram’s elder brother and a senior lawyer of Kendrapara, is happy too. “I am happy he got an invitation to attend the consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple” said Kabi.