India: Modi Leads Consecration of Controversial Hindu Temple

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Facts

  • Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday led the consecration of a controversial Hindu temple in the northern city of Ayodhya — honoring the wishes of the country’s majority Hindu population which had long wanted a temple built on the ruins of a historic mosque.1
  • Honoring the Hindu god Ram, the temple is built on the land where many Hindus believe Ram was born. The Babri mosque built in the 1500s stood on the land until 1992, when Hindu mobs tore down the building in riots that killed nearly 2K people. The movement to build a Hindu temple on the ruins of the mosque sparked the mass popularity of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).2
  • The Hindu nationalist BJP had promised to build the long-awaited Ram temple, and construction began after a 2019 Supreme Court ruling that Hindu plaintiffs had the right to the land. However, the court gave Muslim contestants a piece of land 15 miles (24 km) away to build a new mosque, but its construction has yet to begin.3
  • More than 8K people, including dignitaries, actors, and athletes, attended Monday’s ceremony, which was capped by the unveiling of a 51-inch (1.3 meter) black stone idol of Ram. The temple is not finished yet, and some political analysts believe the event was intended to launch Modi’s re-election bid as a sign of his party’s achievement ahead of national elections this spring.4
  • The three-story temple will span nearly 7.4 acres and cost an estimated $217M. In honor of the temple's significance, many states declared Monday a public holiday, and stock and money markets were closed. 100K visitors are expected at the temple daily, and Indian media has extensively covered the ceremony.1
  • Addressing the crowd, Modi called the temple's construction 'the advent of a new era,' signifying the popularity of the BJP amongst India's 80% Hindu population. However, BJP opposition parties — including the Indian National Congress — declined Modi's invitation to attend the ceremony.5

Sources: 1Associated Press, 2BBC News, 3CBS, 4NPR Online News and 5Al Jazeera.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by The Daily Beast. Monday’s celebrations honoring the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya show the unity and joy of Hindus across India. Prime Minister Modi has worked so hard to lift India, and he has the total support of his constituents. While Monday’s ceremony represented joy and inspiration, some leftist detractors seem committed to undermining the holy and symbolic commemoration of Ram. However, these bitter politicians will have to live with the rise of Modi and his party, and the rest of India will celebrate all of the great accomplishments.
  • Narrative B, as provided by Al Jazeera. Monday's event unveiling the Ram temple was just an egotistical ceremony for Modi, who is desperate to manufacture enthusiasm for his re-election bid. Not only was the event insulting to India's 200M Muslims, but it was also an embarrassment because the temple wasn't even finished. Modi failed to build his vanity temple in time for the elections, yet he was still shameless enough to honor a semi-constructed building. The prime minister is still showing that he cares more about his image than he does India's diverse electorate.

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