 "Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu visits Ayodhya, Varanasi")
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and his wife Usha Naidu visited the temple cities of Ayodhya and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh on Friday.
The vice president offered prayers at the Ram Janmabhoomi site amid the chanting of hymns by priests.
Naidu and his wife reached Ayodhya from Lucknow on a special train. They were received at the Ayodhya railway station by Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, Faizabad MP Lallu Singh and other public representatives.
In a tweet, the Vice President's Secretariat said, "The Vice President Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu and his spouse Smt Usha Naidu at the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple site in Ayodhya today. They were accompanied by the Governor of Uttar Pradesh Smt Anandiben Patel and Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Shri Keshav Prasad Maurya."
Naidu and his wife went straight to the Ram Janmabhoomi site from the railway station and were welcomed by priests amid the chanting of Vedic hymns. The vice president was also given a detailed presentation on the construction of the Ram temple.
After offering prayers to Lord Ram, Naidu also worshipped the flag installed in the sanctum sanctorum of the proposed Ram temple.
In a note in the visitor's book of the Ram temple, Naidu said he felt "blessed" after the visit to the shrine.
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Lord Shri Ram and this temple, once built, will enhance India's pride, he said, adding that he considers himself lucky to be able to bow his head before Lord Ram in the sanctum sanctorum.
The vice president also met some seers. He posed for pictures with the team of engineers and construction workers of the Ram temple.
He also visited the famous Hanumangarhi temple and offered prayers there.
Later in the evening, Naidu reached Varanasi by the special train. He was welcomed by Patel and Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak.
Naidu participated in the 'Ganga aarti' with his wife at the Dashashwamedh Ghat. He is scheduled to visit the Kashi Vishwanath temple on Saturday morning.
The vice president is also expected to visit the Kamal Bhairav temple and the Pt Deendayal Upadhyay memorial.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)