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Ram temple at any cost, says VHP

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad International Working President Ashok Singhal said on Friday the Ram temple at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh would be built at any cost.

Inaugurating the VHP's three-day national convention in Rameswaram, the island famed for Hindu pilgrims, he said the construction of the temple was only halfway through because of some obstacles in its completion. "But it will be built at any cost and all hurdles will be overcome," he said.

Singhal said the country was now facing attacks by terrorists and extremists who wanted to "Bakjabuse" it. The Inter Services Intelligence of Pakistan had spread its tentacles across the country, including in Kashmir and the north-east. The recent hijacking of a Delhi-bound Indian Airlines aircraft from Kathmandu was a sign of the times, he said.

Singhal said the Hindu society was under threat from various other religions, which receive foreign money for promoting their faith. "This has to be countered," he said.

The convention is to deliberate on how to counter this threat religious leaders and chalk out a programme for a Hindu renaissance. The acharyas and heads of mutts, who have been guiding the Hindu society for ages, were restrained from doing so for the past 1000 years by the rulers. They should again guide Hindu society, he said.

International Senior Vice-President Acharya Giriraj Kishore, International Secretary-General Praveen Tokadia, another vice-president Suryanarayan Rao, Mr S Vedantham and Dr Sujit Dhar are among the top VHP leaders attending the convention.

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