Kathmandu, August 8

At a time when the entire country is concerned about the sharp rise in coronavirus cases, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is trying to convince everybody that Lord Ram’s birth place is in Ayodhyapuri, area of Madi Municipality, Chitwan.

The PM, who had made a phone call to Ward No 9 Chair of Madi Municipality Shivahari Subedi yesterday, held talks with a delegation from Madi, including Mayor Thakur Prasad Dhakal of Madi Municipality for two hours today.

According to Subedi, the PM told the delegation that he was confident that Lord Ram was born in Nepal’s Ayodhyapuri and not in Ayodhya of India’s Uttar Pradesh.

“All the evidences that I am aware of prove that Lord Ram was born in Nepal’s Ayodhyapuri,” Subedi quoted the PM as telling the delegation.

The PM told the team to consult locals on promoting Ayodhyapuri and to preserve the historical evidences there.

“We also believe that the area from Ayodhyapuri of Chitwan to Balmiki Ashram in Thori, Parsa, was Lord Ram’s birth place,”

Subedi said.

National Assembly lawmaker Dil Kumari Rawal, who represents Chitwan district said the PM told the delegation to do its best to preserve areas around Ayodhyapuri.

According to Rawal, the PM also told the delegation that excavation work should be carried out in Ayodhyapuri area to gather more evidence.

The PM said the government would provide land to develop Ayodhyapuri as a historical and religious place. He also told the delegation to build idols of Ram, Laxman and Sita in Ayodhyapuri area.

Ayodhyapuri area was later merged with wards 7,8 and 9 of Madi Municipality.

The delegation from Chitwan told the prime minister that they would try to change the name of Madi Municipality to Ayodhyapuri Municipality to signify the religious importance of theplace. “We will consult local stakeholders and change the name of Madi Municipality to Ayodhyapuri,” Subedi said.

The PM had claimed on Bhanu Jyanti day that Thori area was the birth place of Lord Ram and not India’s Ayohdya, stirring up religious controversy.

Vice-chair of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Bamdev Gautam had criticised the PM for making the claim without any evidence.

India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party had also issued a press release rejecting the PM’s claim.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone on August 5 for a grand Ram temple to be constructed in Ayodhya of Uttar Pradesh in India.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on August 9, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.