Ram Mandir attendees a mix of diverse castes, sects

The attendees of the 'Pran Pratishthan' ceremony as well as 'yajmans', who part of rituals that will take place on January 22, will represent a diverse mix of castes, communities, sects and schools of thought of Hindu religion and spirituality.

This has been aimed at diluting any perception of the temple belonging to any one caste or sect, and casting a wider net of Hindutva to increase acceptability of the Sangh parivar which includes the BJP, VHP and RSS. The Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra on Saturday said fifteen people, especially belonging to the lower rung of the societal hierarchy, including Dom Raja of Varanasi Anil Chowdhary (Doms are caretakers of cremation grounds jn Varanasi); president of Vanvaasi (tribal) Kalyan Ashram in Udaipur; Ramachandra Kharadi and Dilip Valmiki from Lucknow belonging to the SC community; Mahadev Gaikwad Ghumantu (nomadic) community, a trustee from Latur in Maharashtra; Shri Ling Raja Vasava Raj Appa (Lingayat community) from Kalburgi in Karnataka and others, along with their wives, will be 'yajmans' for the Pran Pratishtha. Saints belonging to more than 150 traditions have been invited, along with 50 major personalities representing tribal traditions.

"For the first time in the history of India, people residing in forests, hills, coastal areas and islands will participate together in a programme like this," said general secretary of the trust, Champat Rai.