Congress Alleges House Arrest of Leaders Ahead of Ayodhya Temple Visit

The Congress party on Tuesday accused the Uttar Pradesh Police of placing several of its leaders, including state unit chief Ajay Rai, under house arrest. This action came a day before a high-level party delegation was scheduled to visit Ayodhya to offer prayers at the Ram Temple.

Ajay Rai claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government "got scared" and had him arrested to prevent the delegation from visiting Ayodhya. "The BJP government's authoritarianism has reached its peak! A delegation of the Uttar Pradesh Congress was scheduled to visit Ayodhya on June 30 to offer prayers to Lord Ram," Rai said in a statement.

"I had just arrived in Ayodhya when the BJP government got so scared that the police arrested me from my hotel and took me away in a police jeep. Why are these 'donation thieves,' accused of land scams in Ayodhya and stealing temple offerings, so afraid of Ram devotees coming to the city? We will neither stop nor bow down!" he added.

Meanwhile, Ajay Rai's wife alleged that the BJP government is willing to go to any extent to silence her husband's voice. She added that if anything happened to Rai, "the entire responsibility will lie with this unethical BJP government." "The BJP government is willing to go to any extent to silence my husband's voice! After taking him away in a police jeep, the police are now misleading our colleagues by giving them false information," she said. "Our fight against the 'offering thieves' will continue. If anything happens to my husband, the entire responsibility will lie with this unethical BJP government."

Additionally, the Uttar Pradesh Congress claimed that its district president of Pratapgarh, Neeraj Tripathi, was also placed under house arrest by the police without any stated reason. The party posted on X: "Has it now become a crime in UP to even have darshan of Lord Shri Ram? Yesterday, that is, on 30 June, a programme has been proposed for the Congress delegation, under the leadership of State President Shri Ajay Rai ji, to visit Ayodhya and have darshan and worship of Lord Shri Ram. But the BJP government, scared of this journey, has started cowardly actions!"

"Just a short while ago, the Congress District President of Pratapgarh, Neeraj Tripathi ji, has been placed under house arrest (detained) by the police without stating any clear reason. Lord Shri Ram does not belong to any one political party or ideology, but is a symbol of the faith and culture of the entire country. Stopping devotees from going to Ayodhya is unconstitutional," it added.

The Congress delegation, led by Ajay Rai, was scheduled to visit Ayodhya on Tuesday amid a row over alleged donation embezzlement at the Ram Temple. The delegation included Kishori Lal Sharma (Amethi MP), Rakesh Rathor, Ujjwal Raman Singh, and Tanuj Punia, according to a party statement. The Congress had informed the local administration about the proposed visit.

On Monday, a special court in Ayodhya remanded all eight accused arrested in the alleged Ram Temple donation theft case to 14 days of judicial custody after the investigating agency chose not to seek their custodial remand. The accused include Ramshankar Yadav alias Tinnu Yadav, Anukalp Mishra, Avinash Shukla, Karunesh Pandey, Manish Yadav, Lavkush Mishra, Ramashankar Mishra, and Subhash Srivastava. The police continue to gather evidence in the case.