Ram temple flag ceremony: Tribals, forest dwellers, Babri litigant's son among special guests

Representatives of tribal and forest-dwelling communities from Sonbhadra, invited as special guests for the flag-hoisting ceremony at the Ram temple, joined the invitees, including the son of a litigant in the Babri case, in Ayodhya on Tuesday.

Invited by the Shri Ram Mandir Trust, the visitors were given a grand welcome by the members of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), officials said.

The Ram Mandir Trust has arranged for the accommodation of the guests at various locations across the holy city, ensuring all basic amenities, they said.

Ayodhya Mayor Girish Pati Tripathi said the visitors expressed gratitude for the hospitality.

“They said that Lord Ram spent 14 years among forest-dwelling communities, and being part of this historic moment was a blessing for them,” Tripathi told PTI.

The trust also arranged refreshments for the guests before ferrying them to the temple complex in electric vehicles, Tripathi said.

Raju Das, a priest at the Hanuman Garhi temple, said the trust has extended invitations to people from all sections of society.

Among the invitees was Iqbal Ansari, whose father Hashim Ansari was one of the original litigants in the Babri mosque case.

“I am delighted to attend the programme,” Ansari told reporters.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hoist a saffron flag, 10 feet high and 20 feet long, bearing the image of a radiant Sun symbolising Lord Ram's valour, an 'Om', and the Kovidara tree atop a 'shikhar' built in the traditional Nagara architectural style.

The ceremony is taking place on the auspicious Panchami of the Shukla Paksha in the month of Margashirsha, coinciding with the Abhijit Muhurat of Ram and Sita's Vivah Panchami, a day signifying divine union, the prime minister's office said in a statement on Monday.