Adopting a soft Hindutva line and visiting the famous Hanumangarhi temple at Ayodhya on Friday, Rahul Gandhi became the first of the Nehru-Gandhi clan to have visted the holy town after the Babri mosque demolition in 1992.
After the darshan, the Congress vice-president launched the Deoria to Delhi Kisan Yatra and headed for neighbouring Ambedkar Nagar and visited the Kichaucha Sharif Dargah, a Muslim shrine.
Mahant of Hanumangarhi temple, Gyan Das led Rahul inside the temple and later recited hymns for the puja. The priest presented the leader with a saffron dushala. During the visit, Rahul and the Mahant had a closed door tete a tete ostensibly on UP politics. Opposed to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the Mahant is said to be close to SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and was making efforts for an amicable solution to the vexed Ayodhya dispute.
Even as elaborate security arangements were put in place at the makeshift Ram lalla temple, Rahul chose not to go there. All the shops and business establishment were shut down till Rahul returned to the Circuit House for leading his Yatra to Ambedkarnagar.
On the foruth day of his 2500 km long Deoria-Delhi Yatra, Rahul also offered chaadar at the Kichaucha Shariff dargah of Ambedkarnagar later on Friday evening.
At a khaat sabha in Ambedkarnagar, Rahul once again pledged to take fight the of the farmers and ensure that their pending loans were waived off, their electricity bills were halved and they got higher minimum support price for their produce. The Congress scion also stopped at the house of Dalit pradhan Digai Ram in Ayodhya and spoke to his family members.
The Deoria-Delhi Kisan Yatra will remain suspended on Monday and Tuesday, due to the festival of Bakrid. The information was uploaded on Rahul Gandhi’s official Twitter handle.
The Yatra will resume at Allahabad from September 14. On Saturday and will cover Jaunpur and Azamgarh.