Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Rai has been placed under house arrest ahead of his planned Ram Temple visit in Ayodhya. Rai had arrived in Ayodhya a day earlier, on Monday, and was staying at Padmashree Palace in Kaniganj. Police placed him under house arrest late on Monday night. At around 11:40 pm, Ayodhya Police took him into their custody and escorted him away.
Ayodhya Police took him into custody and shifted him to Acharya Narendra Dev University of Agriculture and Technology, where he was kept overnight. Discussions are now underway between Congress leaders and police officials over the matter. Late on Monday night, the Uttar Pradesh Congress, through its official X account, announced that a Congress delegation led by state president Ajay Rai would visit Ayodhya on June 30 to offer prayers at the Ram Temple.
However, the party alleged that the BJP government, fearing the visit, resorted to "cowardly" measures. It also claimed that Pratapgarh District Congress president Neeraj Kumar was placed under house arrest late Monday night without any explanation. Launching a sharp attack on the BJP, the Congress said Lord Ram is a symbol of faith and culture for the entire country, not any one political party or ideology.
The party termed it unconstitutional to stop devotees from visiting Ayodhya and demanded that the Uttar Pradesh government end what it called its "repressive" policy, immediately release the Congress leaders placed under house arrest, and allow them to visit the Ram Temple without any obstruction.
Following Ajay Rai's detention, his wife Reena Rai also criticised the BJP government. She alleged that the government was willing to go to any extent to suppress her husband's voice. She claimed that after taking him away in a police vehicle, authorities deliberately misled their associates about his whereabouts.
"Our fight against the 'Chadhawa Chor' (offering thieves) will continue. If anything happens to my husband, the entire responsibility will lie with this unrighteous BJP government," she said. The Congress delegation scheduled to visit Ayodhya comprised Uttar Pradesh Congress chief and former minister Ajay Rai, MPs Kishori Lal Sharma, Tanuj Punia, Rakesh Rathore and Ujjwal Raman Singh, MLA Virendra Chaudhary, former MP A.P. Gautam, and former MLC Deepak Singh, among other party leaders.
