Ayodhya: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis with other leaders visited Lord Ram Lala temple in the holy city and also visited an ancient Lord Hanuman temple on April 9.
"It was Balasaheb Thackeray's and millions of Ram devotees' dream to build a grand divine Ram temple in Ayodhya... PM Modi has made this dream come true by beginning the construction of the Ram temple," CM Shinde said addressing a crowd of supporters after visiting the temples.
Many workers of Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party descended to see the two leaders.
CM Shinde and Deputy CM Fadnavis receive warm welcome
Maharashtra CM and Fadnavis receive a warm welcome when they arrived at Ayodhya.
This is Shinde's first visit to the temple town since being sworn in as Maharashtra chief minister in June last year.
CM Shinde's statement ahead of his Ayodhya visit
"Lord Ram's blessings are with us and that is why we have got the symbol of bow and arrow," said Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde as he left for Ayodhya from Lucknow.
Meanwhile, Deputy CM after reaching Lucknow said, "I am very happy that I am going to Ayodhya to take blessings from Lord Ram."
Shinde flew down to Lucknow on Saturday
Shinde and other Shiv Sena leaders flew down to Lucknow on Saturday. Shinde was welcomed by his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath at the Lucknow airport, amid fanfare.
The Maharashtra CM will perform 'aarti' on the banks of the Saryu River. He will also visit the ongoing construction site of Ram Mandir.
"This is not a political visit. I keep visiting Ayodhya but this is the first time I have come here as the chief minister. All our party leaders wanted to take the blessings of Lord Ram. I want to thank Yogi-ji and his ministers who were here to welcome us," Shinde told ANI.
Sanjay Raut takes a swipe at CM's Ayodhya visit
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut attacked Shinde alleging that Maharashtra CM went to Ayodhya when farmers were facing problems due to rain and hailstorm.
Addressing mediapersons, Raut said, "We also believe in Lord Ram. We have also been to Ayodhya several times. But the BJP never followed us there. When the Babri incident happened, they ran away. Farmers in Maharashtra are saddled with problems due to rain and hailstorm but the government, ignoring all these issues, is visiting Ayodhya. Will Lord Ram bless them? They are copying us. Public knows who is original and who is duplicate."
