Darbhanga, Bihar:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, campaigning today in Bihar’s Mithila region for the current elections, spoke of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, outlining his government’s work and his coalition’s promises for the ‘State.
Addressing a joint rally with Nitish Kumar on his second day of campaigning in Bihar, Prime Minister Modi began by praising his critic-turned-ally, but his comments on Ayodhya were seen by many as a veiled search against him.
The Prime Minister said that “Maa Sita” (Lord Ram’s wife) would happily look at her birthplace Mithila as well as Ayodhya.
“After centuries of penance, finally a great Ram temple is being built in Ayodhya. Those who are in politics asked us for a tareekh (date), they are forced to applaud. This is the identity of the BJP, the NDA – what we say, we do, ”the prime minister said.
His comments, many have said, echoed Nitish Kumar’s criticism of the BJP in 2015, when he was still a partner of Lalu Yadav and Congress. “People from BJP and RSS keep saying – Ram Lalla hum aayenge, mandir wahin banayenge, by tareekh nahin batayenge (Ram Lalla we will come, let’s build a temple there, but we will not give a date), ”the chief minister remarked, taunting the BJP.
But moments before Ayodhya’s comment, PM Modi’s leaving note was a compliment to Nitish Kumar. “Over the past 15 years, Bihar has progressed under Nitish-jileadership, ”he said.
