With polls looming, Modi expands scope of political messaging in Ram mandir speech

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s carefully crafted speech at the consecration ceremony was peppered with references to characters from the Ramayana as he sought to expand the scope of political messaging around the Ram Temple movement in the election year to draw a wider audience across caste lines.

The first character the Prime Minister spoke about was Shabari, the tribal girl who plucks the best available berries for Ram and Sita when they are in exile.

“Spending her life in a small hut in a deep and dense jungle…..(meri aadivasi maa) my tribal mother Shabari. One can sense un-parallel trust and faith when one thinks of Shabari,” Modi said in his speech, carefully choosing the words 'my tribal mother’ after a pregnant pause. 

A temple in the Ram temple complex is also dedicated to Shabari. 

Modi, in the same vein, also referred to Nishad Raj, the boatman who helped Ram cross the river Saryu as he left Ayodhya after being exiled. 

“Nishad Raj’s reverence for Ram and Ram’s kinship for Nishad Raj…how fundamental it…that all are same and all are equal,” Modi said in his half-hour speech. 

Nishad Raj in the Hindi heartland states is a caste icon among the riverine communities spread across the Indo-Gangetic plains. The community goes by various caste names, like Nishad, Kevat, Mallah, Sahni, and Kashyap, and comprises one of the largest voter blocs among the backward classes. Nishad Party, a sub-regional party of the community in UP, is now a part of the NDA alliance. 

A temple in the Ram Mandir complex in Ayodhya is also dedicated to Nishad Raj. Last month, Modi, on a day’s visit to Ayodhya to oversee preparations for the consecration ceremony, visited a Nishad family, which was the 10th crore beneficiary of the Ujjwala Scheme.

Modi also quoted the epic battle between Jatayu, the epic bird who tried to prevent Ravan from taking Sita to Lanka. The prime minister visited the Lepakshi temple in Andhra Pradesh last week, where Jatayu is said to have fallen after being injured.

After the consecration ceremony, the PM offered tributes to the bronze idol of Jatayu installed at Kuber Tila inside the temple complex.

Apart from references to Hanuman, Modi invoked the squirrel that works alongside Vanar Sena to build the bridge to Lanka. 

“Those thinking, 'I am very ordinary' must think of the contribution of the squirrel. It will remove such hesitations and teach us that every effort, big or small, has its strengths. It is everyone's efforts that will form the foundation for a grand India."

Modi underscored the larger theme of ‘Vikasit Bharat’ or developed India that is now part of the BJP’s poll campaign for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.