LK Advani, 96, is the founding member of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Lal Krishna Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi, veteran BJP stalwarts who spearheaded the Ram Temple agitation in the early 1990s, have been “requested not to come” to Ayodhya for the consecration ceremony of the temple next month because of their advanced age, Ram Temple Trust general secretary Champat Rai said on Monday.
They have accepted the trust’s request, he added. “Both are elders of the family and considering their age, they were requested not to come, which was accepted by both,” Rai was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
Advani, 96, is a founding member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. In 1990, he embarked on Ram Rath Yatra from Somnath in Gujarat to Ayodhya to press for his party’s demand for the temple.
In the general elections next year, the BJP emerged as the second largest party after the Congress.
Murli Manohar Joshi, who will turn 90 next month, is also a founding member of the BJP. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the ceremony, which is scheduled on January 22.
Former prime minister HD Deve Gowda will be invited for the event, Rai said. “Shankaracharyas of six darshanas (ancient schools) and around 150 saints and sages will participate in the ceremony,” he added.
Spiritual leader Dalai Lama, Mata Amritanandamayi of Kerala, yoga guru Baba Ramdev, actors Rajnikanth, Amitabh Bachchan, Madhuri Dixit, Arun Govil have also been invited.
Rai said preparations for the ceremony will be completed by January 15 and rituals will begin from January 16.
4000 saints and 2200 other guests have been invited in total, including heads of major temples like Kashi Vishwanath and Vaishno Devi.
