BJP CMs in Ayodhya as party tests Hindutva model to keep votes intact

Vibha Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 15

Prime Minister Narendra Modi appears to have set the BJP’s agenda for not just the 2022 Assembly elections, but also for the Lok Sabha poll in 2024, with infrastructure development imbued with hues of saffron.

After the grand opening of Sri Kashi Vishwanath Dham in his Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi, Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states today visited Ayodhya.

Though the BJP’s traditional poll plank no longer exists in its original form after the Supreme Court judgment and the construction of the Ram temple, the PM and the party want to keep the tested formula (Hindutva) alive to enthuse Hindu voters, especially in Uttar Pradesh where internal surveys have indicated a rough ride for the party. The CMs and Deputy Chief Ministers were accompanied by their wives. Party president JP Nadda, who performed “aarti” and offered prayers at the Saryu Ghat, said all CMs wanted to have “darshan” of Ram Lalla since they were already in Varanasi for the meeting with PM Modi.

“We all wanted to see the grand temple being built (in Ayodhya). The CMs keep meeting from time to time. Since everyone is in Kashi, they wanted to visit Ram Lalla,” Nadda said.