Adityanath said he renamed Faizabad to Ayodhya so that people across the world would know the place by the name of Lord Ram. (Express photo) Adityanath said he renamed Faizabad to Ayodhya so that people across the world would know the place by the name of Lord Ram. (Express photo)

The Congress is the biggest obstacle in the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath alleged at an election rally in Chhattisgarh on Wednesday. Speaking at Sakri in Bilaspur district, Adityanath said he renamed Faizabad to Ayodhya so that people across the world would know the place by the name of Lord Ram.

He was campaigning for BJP candidate from Takhatpur, Harshita Pandey, ahead of the second phase of polls in the state on November 20. The Congress has fielded Rashmi Singh from the seat. “Chhattisgarh is the place of the family of Lord Ram’s mother. We have renamed a janpad (district) of UP to Ayodhya so that people from across the country and world know the place by the name of Lord Ram,” he said.

“Would this (renaming) have been possible had Congress been in power? Would it have been possible to hold a Dipotsav programme in Ayodhya during Diwali, if Congress had been in power?” the BJP leader asked. “Had Congress government been in power in Chhattisgarh, would it have been possible to build a magnificent Ram temple in Raipur,” he added, referring to a prominent temple in the state capital.

“After the formation of Chhattisgarh (in 2000), Congress came to power in the state. During its rule corruption was at its peak, naxalism flourished and coal and mining mafia were influential,” he alleged.

“After the BJP came to power in 2003, the Raman Singh government created a milestone in the development and worked for the welfare of farmers, labourers, youths and all sections of society,” he claimed.

Nobody had imagined that the BJP would come to power in north-eastern states but now the party is in power in Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Assam, Adityanath said.

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