Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath unveiled a seven-ft-tall rosewood statue of Lord Ram at Ayodhya Shodh Sansthan on Friday.
The move comes amid demand from the seers for the construction of Ram temple at the disputed site getting louder again after BJP's crushing poll victory.
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray has also upped the ante again and is slated to visit the disputed site in Ayodhya with 18 newly-elected MPs on June 15. On the same day, various seer organisations are expected to pass a resolution asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to start the construction of Ram Mandir.
The matter of the disputed site is pending before a three-member committee constituted by the Supreme Court.
The chief minister thanked the Sant Samaj in Ayodhya for blessing Narendra Modi and thus make BJP secure a thumping majority in the recent Lok Sabha polls.
"This year, some big incidents took place. I thank sants in Ayodhya who blessed Narendra Modi. The Prime Minister will now make India the superpower in the world. The people of India rejected the negativity in politics. If the country is safe then the religion is safe," Adityanath said.
Reiterating the resolve to build a grand Ram temple at the disputed site, Adityanath said, "We should all have the same goal, that should be the goal of nationalism. Our wish is to build a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya."
"Governments have refrained from using Lord Ram's name since 1947. But now, development schemes are underway for Ayodhya. This place is recognised from Ramjanmabhumi around the world. So we renamed the municipal corporation and district's name to Ayodhya. We are protecting culture and traditions," Adityanath said.
Know The Statue
The statue unveiled by CM Yogi in Ayodhya was purchased from Kaveri Karnataka State Art and Craft Emporium. It is worth Rs 35 lakh and was honoured by the President in 2017.
