Sacred Games

The BJP is unlikely to bring an ordinance to bypass the Supreme Court and start building the Ram temple. But it has aligned itself closely to the cause, hoping to be its biggest political beneficiary in the election season.

- Pratul Sharma 

The narrow lanes of Ayodhya belie the politico-religious image it holds across the world. This dusty town seems to be caught in a time warp. Dilapidated buildings, roaming cows, open drains, shops selling religious accessories, hordes of pilgrims and the gently flowing Sarayu appear unfazed by the storm building over the Ram temple. Ayodhya residents have seen it all. They oscillate between cynicism and hope when they discuss what the temple construction could do to the town’s fortunes.

To reach the heavily guarded Ram Janmabhoomi site, visitors have to pass through seven checkpoints, where they are frisked. The path itself is caged from entry to exit, and people can walk only in single file. Most of the police officers posted here are Brahmins; Mishra, Tyagi, Tiwari and Pandey are the most common surnames to be seen. Even the tour guides narrate stories from the hindutva perspective.

“Hindus are losing patience” is the line being repeated across the country, as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and its affiliates such as the Vishva Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal are pushing for massive mobilisation like they did in the early 1990s. The Shiv Sena has already taken thousands of its workers to Ayodhya to remind everyone that it was involved in bringing down the Babri mosque. The road from Lucknow to Ayodhya is lined with posters put up by saffron political bodies exhorting believers to join them.