Chandigarh, January 22
The new Ram Lalla idol was consecrated at the newly constructed temple here on Monday amid grand celebrations in the town, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi participating in the rituals.
The prime minister walked inside the temple premises with a silver 'chattar' (umbrella) placed on a red folded dupatta.
Dressed in a golden kurta teamed up with a cream dhoti and patka, he took ‘sankalp' for the “pran pratishtha ceremony” and later moved to the sanctum sanctorum for the rituals.
The UP CM said, "It's an emotional moment for all of us, it has come after a 500-year wait," adding the entire country is immersed in devotion of Lord Ram, it appears we have arrived in 'Treta Yug'.
Army helicopters shower petals on Ayodhya temple as consecration ceremony takes place.
Deviating from his party line, Himachal Pradesh minister Vikramaditya Singh, who is the son of state Congress chief Pratibha Singh, reached Ayodhya on Monday to attend the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple. Another Congress MLA from the state Sudhir Sharma also reached Ayodhya for the ceremony.
The Supreme Court on Monday asked the authorities in Tamil Nadu to act in accordance with the law and not based on any oral instructions on "banning" special prayers and live telecast of the Ram temple consecration ceremony in all temples across the state.
A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta, while hearing a plea seeking quashing of an "oral order" dated January 20 banning live telecast of the consecration ceremony at Ayodhya in temples across Tamil Nadu, said no one is bound to abide with the oral orders.
The bench took on record the statement of senior advocate Amit Anand Tiwari for Tamil Nadu that there are no restrictions on 'puja archana' in temples or live telecast of consecration ceremony at Ayodhya. He said the plea is “politically motivated”.
Veteran BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani, who campaigned across the country for the Ram temple in Ayodhya, will not attend the Pran Pratishtha ceremony due to extreme cold weather.
It is being said that the decision has been taken keeping in view the health of 96-year-old Advani and due to extreme cold weather.
Earlier this month, RSS leaders Krishna Gopal and Ram Lal along with Vishwa Hindu Parishad's International Working President Alok Kumar had visited Advani's house and invited him for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony.
However, due to bad weather, Advani cancelled his Ayodhya visit programme at the last moment.
A multi-layer security cover is in place in Ayodhya for the consecration ceremony, with 10,000 CCTV cameras and drones equipped with artificial intelligence keeping an eye on the movement of people and police personnel in plain clothes deployed at the venue.
Movable barriers with barbed wires attached to them can be spotted at every prominent crossroad in the temple city, as police use them to regulate traffic, especially during VVIP movements.
Multiple NDRF teams trained to tackle chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear attacks, drowning incidents and disasters like earthquakes have been deployed.
While more than 7,000 people are on the list of invitees for the event, the select list features 506 A-listers.
The consecration rituals for the 'Pran Pratishtha' started from the Saryu river on January 16 and will be completed on Monday afternoon in the 'abhijeet muhurta', according to the trust.
Lakhs of people are expected to watch the event live on TV and online platforms as the central government has announced a half-day off on January 22 and many states followed suit.
Temples across the country have announced special festivities on the occasion.
From Washington DC to Paris to Sydney, events have been also planned in various parts of the world by either the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) or Hindu diaspora groups.
The magnificent Ram Janmbhoomi Mandir or Ram temple has been constructed in the traditional Nagara style. Its length (east-west) is 380 feet; width 250 feet and height 161 feet. It is supported by a total of 392 pillars and has 44 doors.
The pillars and walls of the temple showcase intricately sculpted depictions of Hindu deities, gods and goddesses. In the main sanctum sanctorum at the temple's ground floor, the idol of Ram Lalla has been placed.
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