Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Tuesday asserted that party chief Uddhav Thackeray doesn't require an invitation to visit Ayodhya for the consecration ceremony of the Lord Ram temple next month. He highlighted the party's longstanding association with the city, contrasting it with the BJP.
There is no need for an invitation to Uddhav Thackeray to visit Ayodhya, Raut said. Our relationship with the city is much older than the BJP's. He underscored the Shiv Sena's involvement in the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, pointing to party founder Bal Thackeray's public claim of responsibility for the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992.
The ceremony to consecrate Lord Ram's idol in the newly-built temple in Ayodhya is scheduled for January 22 in the coming year. Vishwa Hindu Parishad chief (late) Ashok Singhal used to hold meetings at Matoshree, the residence of the Thackerays in Mumbai, and the BJP was never there at that time, Raut added.