Ram Temple Trust secretary, treasurer praise Rahul for Bharat Jodo Yatra

The general secretary of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Khestra Trust on Wednesday (January 4) praised Congress MP Rahul Gandhi for undertaking the Bharat Jodo Yatra.

Champat Rai said neither the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) nor Prime Minister Narendra Modi had criticized the yatra.

“I think you all should also do the same,” Rai added. “I am an RSS worker, and RSS never criticized the Yatra.”

His statement came a day after the chief priest of the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya blessed the yatra. Acharya Satyendra Das, in a letter to Rahul Gandhi, wished that his Yatra can unite the country.

“The objectives of the Yatra will be fulfilled with the blessing of Lord Rama,” Das wrote.

“Whatever work you are doing for the country is for the benefit of all. My blessings are with you,” he added in the letter.

“He is walking in this harsh weather, and that must be appreciated. I must say everyone should do a yatra of the country,” he said.

Also read: Why Bharat Jodo Yatra shouldn’t be seen in terms of immediate votes

Govind Dev Giri, treasurer of the Trust that is constructing the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, also appreciated Rahul Gandhi’s yatra. “I pray to Lord Ram to bless him,” Giri said, as he asked everyone to do a “yatra for the country”.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, replying to a question on Bharat Jodo Yatra passing through his state, said everyone had the freedom to conduct programmes and “we have to respect the feelings of people”.

“The question is, what is their intention and ambition? If you are talking about connecting people, then it should reflect through work and statements. For the BJP, as the Prime Minister says, the nation comes first, and we keep the country above the party. But for many people, the party is above the country.”

The Yatra entered UP’s Ghaziabad district from Delhi on Tuesday (January 3).

(With agency inputs)