Differences have cropped up among Congress leaders in Kerala on the question of participation of its leaders in the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22.

Senior Congress leader K Muraleedharan said the Kerala unit of the party had urged the All India Congress Committee (AICC) leadership not to participate in the ceremony. However, KPCC chief K Sudhakaran said he was unaware of the state unit conveying its position to the national leadership on the matter.

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Speaking to media persons in Kannur on Thursday, Sudhakaran said the Kerala unit’s opinion on the matter would align with the national leadership’s decision and that the state unit would communicate its position if sought.

He said it is the AICC that should take a final decision on the matter.

When his attention was drawn to the Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama’s critical piece in its mouthpiece ‘Suprabhatham’, Sudhakaran said he had nothing to comment on it except that it was the religious body’s opinion and that they had every right to express their thoughts on the matter.

When pointed out to the statement of K Muraleedharan that the state unit’s position on the issue has been conveyed to AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal, Sudhakaran said Muraleedharan himself should be asked about the basis of his opinion.

Earlier in the day, K Muraleedharan had earlier said in Kozhikode that the Kerala unit of the party had already informed Venugopal that it was opposed to party leaders attending the event. He said the party was yet to take a stand at the national level and that there was still time to think about it.

He said the national leadership of the Congress would take an appropriate decision after discussing the matter within the party and among the INDIA bloc partners.

The invitation to the Ram Temple consecration ceremony has put the Congress in a quandary. If Congress leaders participate in the ceremony it might lead to Muslims moving away from the party, particularly in Kerala, and if they do not participate, it might be assumed in north India that the Congress is against the Hindu sentiments.

Former KPCC president VM Sudheeran said the party should not participate in the event as the temple is built by demolishing the Babri Masjid.

Meanwhile, Congress Working Committee (CWC) member Sashi Tharoor said in Pathanamthitta that the Congress leaders are to individually take a call on the matter since the party has not yet conveyed its common stance.

He said the construction of temples is not the job of an elected government. The Central government should prioritise its focus on its primary commitments to the public, including the creation of employment opportunities and enhancing the overall quality of life.

In an editorial captioned ‘Will the Congress put its foot on the land where the mosque is demolished’, the Samatha’s mouthpiece said the Congress is adopting a soft Hindutva position and if this position is not changed, the BJP itself will come to power in 2024.

Welcoming the decision of CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechuri and CPI leader D Raja, rejecting the invitation to attend the consecration function, the Suprabham daily asks the Congress to be careful not to fall on BJP’s agenda to communalise the country.

The editorial warns that minorities and Dalits, who have reposed faith in the Congress, will opt for other political alternatives, if the party attends the Ram Temple consecration ceremony.