A magnificent Ram Mandir is being re-built after the centuries old struggle of the Hindu community. After a number of karsevaks laid down their lives to enable adherents of Sanatan Dharma to perform puja at the sacred land of Sri Rama, the Mandir is being revived to its ancient glory and splendour.
As work is going on in the holy town of Ayodhya, Organiser representative Pankaj Kumar Singh had a conversation with General Secretary of the Ram Janmabhoomi Tirth Kshetra Trust and national vice-president of Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), Champat Rai. Excerpts:
It’s been more than four decades since the VHP put its weight behind the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. The struggle for the Ram Mandir is exemplary yet troubling at times. How do you see things unfolding before your eyes?
The prestige of Bharat and Hindu community is on the rise. A grand temple of Prabhu Sri Ram will not only swell the stature of ‘Sanatan Dharma’ but the nation’s prestige would also be magnified manifolds before the world.
Ayodhya is being beautified, though another change is visible on the streets of Ayodhya where people can be seen inspired by the rejuvenation of Vedic culture. How do you see it?
Earlier, there were a few thousand people who used to visit Ayodhya. Now the numbers have grown around ten times than before, so undoubtedly there is a sense of rejuvenation within the devotees. The other significant aspect is that when the numbers of devotees grow they need wider roads to walk upon. Earlier people used to walk on their feet. However now even people from the nearby villages arrive in jeeps, cars, thus they need wider roads and other facilities, that is why Ayodhya is being beautified as a smart city. It has boosted the economy of the town as well.
How much time will it take to build the whole premises?
Currently, the whole focus is on making a portion of the temple ready for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony, we are putting our efforts to make it as convenient as we can so that the Pran Pratishtha can be performed with ease, as far as the whole project is concerned we are not in a position to issue a date.
Now that a grand temple is being erected at Ayodhya, will VHP shift its focus on Kashi Vishwanath and Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in Mathura?
As far as our organisation is concerned, no such discussion on Kashi Vishwanath and Krishna Janmabhoomi temple has been held. We are in the midst of something (Ram Janmabhoomi temple work) and currently our sole focus is to complete the task at hand. In my opinion, extremely personal opinion, you should first complete one task at hand and dedicate it to society only then you should think about the other.
