Bengaluru, Feb 14: A Congress MLA in Karnataka on Wednesday said that the land for construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya was provided by former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao.
K M Shivalinge Gowda, who represents Arsikere constituency, thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for building the Ram Temple but sought to claim credit for his party as well.
"The Prime Minister has built a big Sri Ram Temple (in Ayodhya) for which I thank him. We don't have any differences of opinion with Prime Minister who built the Sri Ram Temple. I chant Jai Sri Ram' and I pay obeisance to all gods. Rama has not been given on contract to the BJP. We are also devotees of Sri Ram," the Congress MLA said.
"It was former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao who provided the land (for Ram Temple in Ayodhya)," he further said, without explaining what he meant.
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The Babri mosque, replacing which the temple has been built, was demolished on December 6, 1992 when P V Narasimha Rao headed the Congress government at the Centre. Recently, the BJP government conferred on Rao the highest civilian award Bharat Ratna.
BJP members such as Bharath Shetty objected to Gowda's statement saying that the Congress has zero contribution in the construction of the Ram temple.
They also sought to know whether it was his view or his party's views on Lord Ram and also wanted to know the Congress party's stand on Kashi and Mathura.
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Baghdad, Feb 25 (AP): Former Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, known for promoting the rule of law, returned to Baghdad Tuesday for the first time in more than two years despite ongoing security threats.
In 2021, he survived an assassination attempt in which two armed drones targeted his residence in Baghdad's Green Zone area. The attack came at a time of tensions sparked by the refusal of Iran-backed militias to accept parliamentary election results.
Al-Kadhimi left Iraq after his term as prime minister ended in 2022 and has been living in London and the United Arab Emirates.
The former prime minister did not immediately make any public statements upon his return.
Three officials with his office who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly said security threats against the former prime minister were still present. They said he had returned at the invitation of current Iraqi political leaders who hoped he could use his connections to help them confront a worsening economic crisis that threatens the country's stability.
Al-Kadhimi has good relations with the United States and Saudi Arabia. Iraq is currently looking to strengthen ties with both countries, particularly as regional upheavals over the past year have left Iran in a weakened position.
During his term, Baghdad hosted a series of talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia, which helped pave the way for the regional rivals to formally restore diplomatic ties in 2023 after a seven-year rift. He was Iraq's former intelligence chief before becoming prime minister in 2020 following mass anti-government protests that toppled the previous cabinet.
Iraq is also set to hold parliamentary elections later this year, raising the possibility that al-Kadhimi might be preparing to attempt a political come-back.