In an unexpected boost for Rahul Gandhi‘s Bharat Jodo Yatra which entered the politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh today, the head priest of the Ayodhya Ram Temple, Acharya Satyendra Das, wrote to the Congress MP from Wayanad, praising the objectives of the Bharat Jodo Yatra and wishing him the best for it.
“May you be healthy and have a long life. The work that you are doing for the betterment of the country is in the direction of sarvajan hitaya, sarvajan sukhaya. May the blessings of Lord Ram Lalla always be with you,” he wrote in his letter.
The blessings come as a shot in the arm for the Congress party which has been on a slippery slope in the state that sends the maximum number of MPs to the Lok Sabha. The party won the solitary seat of Rae Bareli in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and two seats in the Assembly elections held in February-March 2022.
The letter becomes even more peculiar given the fact that the Ram temple has traditionally been appropriated by the Bharatiya Janata Party and associated with its brand of Hindu-centric politics.
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Congress spokesperson Gaurav Tiwari, who hails from Ayodhya, said he had taken the letters of invitation for the Yatra to many temples and saints in Ayodhya, who gave their blessings in return. A similar letter was also taken to Acharya Satyendra Das who said he wanted to write a letter in reply.
Meanwhile, right-wing organisation, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, has taken exception to the letter written by Das, who has been the chief priest of the Ram temple in Ayodhya for over three decades. The VHP said the priest should have taken into account the history of the Congress when it came to Lord Ram.
“It is his personal decision to give blessings to someone, but the fact is that blessings help only those with a clear conscience and mind and those who actually want to work for uniting society,” VHP Ayodhya spokesperson Sahrad Sharma told The Indian Express. Sharma added that Das, being the priest of the Ram Temple, should have considered the fact that it was the Congress which questioned the existence of Lord Ram and tried to setroy the Ram Setu. Reacting to the VHP’s criticism, Das said he is not a political person, but an ordinary saint. “Whoever comes to me for blessing, I give the same to them. I know the people who came to me with the invite and who wanted blessings for Rahul Gandhi for the Yatra, and I gave it them,” he told IE, adding that noone should feel bad about the blessings of a saint.