The Congress Party remains committed to a secular India and is against the politicisation of religion in the country.
This was stated by Congress spokesperson Anuma Acharya, a retired Indian Air Force officer, at a press conference today. Her visit comes a day after the party announced its decision to boycott the Ram Mandir inauguration event.
Acharya explained that the party’s decision was taken because religion is a personal subject and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has made the temple construction a political event.
During the press conference Acharya mentioned her 24 years of service in the IAF and how she has seen four places of worship. “The mandir, the gurdwara, the masjid, and the church – all at one place during my years of service in the armed forces. Religion is a very personal thing and we believe in the armed forces that it should remain so,” she said.
Expressing concerns over the ongoing construction of the Ram Temple, Acharya, who identifies as a Hindu Brahmin, emphasised the incomplete status of the temple. She noted, “Our religion says that a complete temple involves the pranpratishtha (a consecration rite). This temple is incomplete as the ‘Kalash’, the top portion, has not been positioned.” She claimed that four Shankaracharyas (gurus) are also boycotting the event as the temple is not complete.
Acharya accused the BJP of leveraging the temple construction for political gains. “This is a political event, not the actual event. Otherwise, they would have waited until Ram Navami, the birthday of Lord Rama, and could have done it on that day. But they want to cash in during election time.”
Meanwhile, the Congress also released a dossier of accusations against supposed BJP misrule over the last 10 years since it came to power at the Centre. The opposition attacked the governing party on unemployment, inflation, agriculture, “discrimination” against SCs, STs and minorities, Covid-19 “mismanagement”, “atrocities” against women, “demolishing democracy”, etc.
Acharya also spoke on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s second pan-India march, taking him from Maharashtra to Manipur.