 "Mamata Banerjee")
West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) Chief Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday announced her plans for January 22, the day of the consecration or 'Pran Pratishtha' of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
"Many people have been asking me about various temples but I have nothing to say," Banerjee said, adding, "I have always said 'Dhorma Jaar Jaar, Utsob Shobaar' (Where there is religion, there are festivals for all)."
The Trinamool chief further said that on January 22, she will hold a rally from Kali Mandir, following which an interfaith rally will be held.
"I will do a rally on January 22. It will begin from Kali Mandir, where only I will visit to offer prayers to Maa Kaali. Following that, we will hold an interfaith rally from Hazra to Park Circus maidan and hold a meeting there. We will cover mosques, temples, churches, and gurdwaras along the way. Everybody is welcome to join the rally. People of all faiths will be there at the rally," the chief minister said.
In addition, the members of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) will hold a rally in every block and district at 3 pm on the day.
"From January 20 till February 12, we will hold camps in every polling station where three of our officers will be present. People can give their names if they haven't been able to avail of our welfare schemes. This will be under the banner of Jono Sanjog programme," Mamata said.
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Hitting out at the Bharatiya Janata Party, Mamata Banerjee said, "The party [BJP] is pointing fingers at others but everyone knows they are the biggest thieves. It is not our job to do 'Pran Pratistha'. It is the job of the priests. Our job is to create infrastructure."
Ayodhya's Ram temple ceremony
The grand consecration ceremony or 'Pran Pratishtha' of Ram temple will be held on January 22. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will preside over the consecration ceremony of Ram Lalla on January 22. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Chief Mohan Bhagwat will also share the dais with several other dignitaries.
Lakshmi Kant Dixit, a priest from Varanasi, will perform the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony at 12:20 pm. The ceremony is expected to conclude by 1 pm on January 22.
After the January 22 event, the Ram temple will be opened for worship by the devotees. Thousands of pilgrims and tourists from across India are expected to visit the temple every day.
