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Journalism of Courage
Conspicuous by their absence during the 12th anniversary of the Babri Mosque demolition in Ayodhya on Monday, top VHP leaders will be assembling at the temple town on Wednesday for participating in ‘‘Ram Ki Barat’’.
The barat (procession) will start from Ayodhya for Janakpur in Nepal.
The acting VHP president, Ashok Singhal, is expected to reach Ayodhya today while other top leaders like Acharya Giriraj Kishore, Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas chief Nritya Gopal Das, Kaushal Kishore and nearly 1,000 saints, reportedly, will join on Wednesday. The barat is being organised by Dharam Yatra Mahasangh of which Singhal and A.B. Vajpayee are patrons.
While the exercise is being said to be a symbolic gesture to trace the legendary route on which Raja Dashrath travelled to attend Lord Rama’s marriage in Janakpur (in Nepal) but VHP’s hidden agenda behind the move seems to be an attempt to rally Hindus with such programmes.
‘‘Idols of Dashrath, Shatrughan and Bharat will be placed in raths while others will follow. This is an attempt to keep our culture alive and also to spread the message of untouchability in the society,’’ said Sharad Sharma, VHP’s media incharge in Ayodhya. The Barat will come back to Ayodhya after three days.
Today, a sacred thread ceremony was performed in the Karsewakpuram in Ayodhya with a feast for over 100 saints at the VHP’s headquarters.
