Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson, Sonia Gandhi and the Leader of the Congress Party in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury will not be attending the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh on 22nd January 2024.

In a statement, Jairam Ramesh, the Party General Secretary (Communications), said that the leaders “respectfully” decline the invitation to the to the “RSS/BJP event” while abiding by the 2019 Supreme Court judgment and honouring the sentiments of millions who revere Lord Ram.

The Congress alleged that the BJP and RSS of making “a political project” of the “incomplete” temple in the historic city and that its inauguration has been brought forward for electoral gain.