160-member Pak group denied entry into Ayodhya

Faizabad district administration denied a visiting group from Pakistan permission to enter the temple town of Ayodhya on the day of Ram Navami. According to sources in the Home department, the group, comprising Hindus, is presently in India on tour of religious cities of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. They had a pre-decided programme to visit Ayodhya on Ram Navami. The Faizabad administration, however, did not permit the members to alight the train and, instead, asked them to proceed to Hardwar. The group had boarded Doon Express from Banaras on Tuesday, which was bound for Hardwar via Ayodhya.

Faizabad District Magistrate Amod Kumar said that the 160-member group was not allowed keeping in view the problems regarding their security and transport facilities on the particular day.

Kumar said, on being informed about the visiting group by the government, the administration had written to the state government that administrative machinery was not in a position to provide security and attendance on that day.