What’s wrong if we become like Ayodhya: TN BJP chief Nagenthran

Chennai: Tamil Nadu BJP president Nainar Nagenthran on Saturday hit out at the ruling DMK for blaming that the Thirupparankundram lamp lighting row was being converted into an Ayodhya-like situation.

He asked what was wrong if such a situation arose and said the Muslims of Thirupparankundram have not opposed the lighting of the lamp on the stone pillar.

He accused Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin of blaming the BJP of trying to "turn Tamil Nadu into Ayodhya" and said that there was nothing wrong if it became Ayodhya, where there was 'Ram Rajya'.

Ram Rajya refers to Ayodhya being ruled by Lord Rama to ensure all round prosperity.

"Ayodhya is in India, isn't it? Ayodhya is not in England or Europe. There is nothing wrong with becoming like Ayodhya. We have all heard about Lord Rama's rule (Ram Rajya). The NDA will bring Ram Rajya here," Nagenthran told reporters.

The saffron party is facing flak from certain political leaders in Tamil Nadu for insisting that deepam be lit near a Dargah in Thirupparankundram hill in Madurai.

The issue blew up when a single-judge of Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on December 3 directed a petitioner to light a lamp on an ancient stone pillar near a Dargah on the hill on Karthigai Deepam with CISF protection.

Nagenthran was among the 300-odd BJP members detained on December 4 for protesting against the police and the government for not letting them light the lamp even after the court granted permission.

Reacting to allegations that the BJP is creating a communal rift in Madurai district, he said the issue of communal riots does not even arise because no Muslim had objected to the lighting of the lamp near the Dargah.

"If even one Muslim had said something, then you might be right. In the absence of such opposition, we do not know where this is coming from," Nagenthran said.

To a query about why the BJP is against developmental projects like Metro Rail in Madurai, while enthusiastically participating in Thirupparankundram issue, he said as per the detailed project report submitted by them, it is the Tamil Nadu government that is saying Madurai does not need a Metro Rail.

"By stating in their report that the difference in time between bus transport and rail transport is only two or three minutes, it is the Tamil Nadu government that has implied that Metro Rail is not necessary in Madurai," he claimed.

According to him, it was because of the BJP-led central government that Madurai has a huge international airport.

"There are flights from Madurai to Colombo and Madurai to Singapore because of our development projects," Nagenthran said.

He also refuted allegations that the BJP was not as enthusiastic in "Melpathi issue" as it was in Thirupparankundram by stating that the saffron party has done the most for the community by choosing not one, but two presidents of India.

In a long-standing dispute over the Droupadi Amman temple in Melpathi village in the Villupuram district, Dalits have been fighting for their right to enter the temple.