'Rath Yatra' to be launched from Ayodhya today, will pass through 6 states
Ayodhya: Days before the Supreme Court's final hearing on the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute case, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a right-wing group will launch a "Ram Rajya Rath Yatra" from Ayodhya on Tuesday.
The rally is expected to pass through 6 states over the next two months and will end in Tamil Nadu's Rameswaram.
The Yatra will be flagged off by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath from Karsevakpuram in Ayodhya.
The Yatra will travel from UP, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and end in Tamil Nadu.
The Yatra is designed to revive the Ram temple movement in time for the next Lok Sabha elections.
The demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya resulted in several months of inter-communal rioting between India's Hindu and Muslim communities, causing the death of at least 2,000 people.
Senior BJP leader LK Advani took out the the BJP's first Rath Yatra from Somnath to Ayodhya, in 1990. The yatra was aimed at creating awareness about Ayodhya movement.
Leaders from non-BJP states like Kerala said that they were not comfortable with the rally in view of the rally held by Advani in 1990.
Senior CPM leader MA Baby from Kerala admitted that he was "very apprehensive" and hoped the yatra won't materialize, according to a report in NDTV.
The CPM has termed the rally as "politically motivated", which the organisers have denied.
The Supreme Court last week made it clear that it will deal with the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute case “purely as a land dispute” and posted the batch of 14 appeals for hearing from March 14.
