Shiv Sena refused permission to hold meet in Ayodhya

Shiv Sena supremo Udhav Thackeray may succeed in getting the blessings of saints, when he arrives in Ayodhya on Saturday but he has already failed to get the blessings of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Wary of a possible law and order problem, the Ayodhya administration has refused to permit the Shiv Sena to hold a meeting at the 'Ram Katah Park' in the temple town during Udhav's visit.

''Ram Katha Park is not very far from the acquired land, where the make shift Ram Temple is situated therefore we decided to deny permission for the meeting,'' said a senior police official in Ayodhya on Thursday.

It was not clear if Sena would be allowed permission to hold rally if its venue was changed.

Now, Udhav would meet the saints and seers and seek their blessings.

He will also attend the 'arti' (a ritual by fire) on the bank of the Saryu river in Ayodhya.

''He may also pay obeisance before Ramlala'', a Sena leader, who has been camping in Ayodhya, said.

Although the authorities cited proximity of the Sena rally venue as the reason for denial of permission, sources said that the BJP and other saffron outfits associated with it, did not want the Sena meeting in the temple town as it would have allowed the latter to ''score brownie points'' ahead of the 'dharm sabha'.

''Shiv Sena has been criticising us over the Ram Temple issue... We can not allow it to hijack the issue,'' remarked a local BJP leader in Ayodhya.

A large number of Sena workers had already left for Ayodhya to attend Udhav's meeting.