Centre fooling people over Ram temple: Swami Swaroopanand

Hindu seer Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati held malfunctioning in EVMs as the main reason behind BJP's clear majority win the general election this year. He also favoured Rahul Gandhi continuing as the Congress president.

Haridwar:A prominent Hindu seer Tuesday accused the Centre of fooling people over the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, saying it has decided to build it at a place other than where deity was born.

"The Centre has filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court saying it will return 67 acres of acquired land around the disputed site in Ayodhya to the original owners.

Talking to Etv Bharat, Shankaracharya said, "It has, in fact, made up its mind about building a Ram temple in Ayodhya at a spot other than the one where the deity was actually born."

"All its claims about making a grand temple in Ayodhya is just eyewash meant to fool people," he said.

On Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee's angry reactions to the chants of "Jai Shri Ram" in West Bengal, Swaroopanand said it should not be interpreted as her opposition to Ram.

"She is not opposing Ram, she is opposing the BJP. She is doing it purely out of political reasons," the Dwarka Peeth Shankaracharya said.

On Jammu and Kashmir, the seer said, "If article 370 is abolished and the Kashmiri pandits who were driven out of the state are resettled there, peace would definitely return to the state. I am optimistic and whoever does this will get our total support. We have no grudge against anyone."

The shankaracharya also alleged manipulation of EVMs as reason behind the BJP's landslide victory.

"A narrower victory would have been more convincing. This kind of sweep gives credence to doubts being raised about the EVMs. If people have lost their faith in the EVMs,why shouldn't they be replaced?" he asked.

He also favoured Rahul Gandhi continuing as the Congress president.

He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will have to rise to the people's enormous expectations from him as he has returned with a much bigger mandate than the last time.

"Modi means one who will stop export of cow meat, end terrorism, rein in price rise, abolish Article 370 and introduce a common civil code. If he fails to do all this the name Modi will cease to mean anything," the shankaracharya said.

He also said the growing popularity of the Sai Baba was part of a premeditated conspiracy to end the Hindu religion.

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