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Day after Congress’ Tikaram Jully attended consecration, BJP leader ‘purifies’ Rajasthan temple
Public Lokpal
April 08, 2025
Day after Congress’ Tikaram Jully attended consecration, BJP leader ‘purifies’ Rajasthan temple
Alwar : BJP leader Gyan Dev Ahuja sprinkled Ganga water at a Ram temple in Rajasthan's Alwar to "purify" it on Monday (April 7, 2025), a day after Congress leader Tikaram Jully attended the consecration ceremony there.
Congress leaders, including Leader of Opposition in Rajasthan Assembly Mr. Jully and former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, have termed Mr. Ahuja's act an insult to a Dalit but the BJP leader denied the charge.
Maintaining that there was no caste angle to his act, Mr. Ahuja, however, defended his action, saying Congress leaders have "no moral authority" to attend such ceremonies as the party's leadership had questioned the existence of Lord Ram and "boycotted" the consecration ceremony in Ayodhya last year.
The consecration ceremony at the Ram Temple in a residential society of Alwar was held on Sunday (April 6, 2025) on the occasion of Ram Navami and Mr. Jully was in attendance.
On Monday (April 7, 2025), Mr. Ahuja said the consecration ceremony was a "good programme", but there were some "discrepancies". "I went there today and sprinkled Ganga water to purify the temple premises," he told reporters in Alwar.
"The Congress's former president Sonia Gandhi had got affidavits submitted in court, calling Lord Ram mythical. Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi boycotted the historic Ram temple consecration ceremony in Ayodhya. So the party leaders have no moral authority to attend such programmes," he said.
When contacted, Mr. Ahuja told PTI that he took the step because of Congress leaders' view and approach towards Lord Ram and not because Mr. Jully is a "Dalit".
"I purified the temple because Congress leaders believe that Lord Ram was a mythological character. They have questioned the existence of Lord Ram. It is wrong to say that I took this step because he (Jully) is a Dalit and entered a temple," he said.
Mr. Jully, on the other hand, claimed that Mr. Ahuja's act was indicative of the BJP's mentality towards Dalits. He claimed it was not only an attack on his faith but also an effort to promote the crime of untouchability.
"I had raised the voice of Dalits in the assembly and talked about running a campaign against untouchability. But BJP's mentality is such that they washed the temple with Ganga water since I am a Dalit and I visited the temple," the Congress leader said.
"Does BJP hate Dalits so much that it cannot even see us doing puja? Do only BJP leaders have the right over God?" he posed. Mr. Jully demanded that Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma and BJP State unit president Madan Rathore clarify whether they support "washing" a temple if a Dalit visits it.
Criticising Mr. Ahuja, Mr. Gehlot took to X to say, "The incident where BJP leader Gyandev Ahuja sprinkled Ganga water after the Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully visited the temple reflects the BJP's narrow-mindedness towards Dalits. This is unacceptable in the 21st century and deserves strong condemnation." He sought to know whether Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma and BJP state unit president Madan Rathore agreed with the behaviour of their senior leader. "Will the BJP take action against Ahuja for this offensive act?" Several Congress MLAs heavily criticised Mr. Ahuja's action and condemned the BJP-led government in the state.
Mr. Jully, a Dalit leader, is the Congress MLA from the Alwar (Rural) seat, while Mr. Ahuja is a former BJP legislator from Alwar's Ramgarh segment.
PTI
