Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge his predecessor Sonia Gandhi, former prime minister Manmohan Singh and several other dignitaries from the opposition camp have got invitations for the Ram Temple consecration ceremony, said the sources on Thursday.
Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and former prime minister HD Deve Gowda have also received the invitations for the consecration ceremony in Ayodhya on January 22, they added.
The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has been sending invitations to dignitaries from different walks of life.
The sources said the senior Congress leaders are unlikely to attend the ceremony.
The invitations, the sources said, were delivered by a delegation of those associated with the Trust. More invitations are likely to be sent to other opposition leaders in the coming days.
In the new Teerthakshetrapuram (Bag Bijaisi), a Tent City has been established which includes six tubewells, six kitchen houses, and a hospital with ten beds, the Trust has said.
Approximately 150 doctors from around the country have agreed to provide their services in rotation at this hospital.
List of dignitaries who will attend the historic event
The Trust has said that invitations have been extended to revered saints from different traditions, along with all prominent individuals contributing to the honour of the country in every domain. Heads of major temples like Kashi Vishwanath, Vaishno Devi, and representatives of religious and constitutional institutions have also been invited, the trust said. Spiritual leader Dalai Lama, Mata Amritanandamayi of Kerala, yoga guru Baba Ramdev, cine stars Rajnikanth, Amitabh Bachchan, Madhuri Dixit, Arun Govil, film director Madhur Bhandarkar and prominent industrialists such as Mukesh Ambani, Anil Ambani, famous painter Vasudev Kamat, ISRO Director Nilesh Desai and many other eminent personalities have been invited to the function, Rai said.
After the consecration ceremony, 'mandal puja' will be held from January 24 for 48 days as per ritual traditions. The temple will be opened for devotees on January 23, it added.
Rai said that proper arrangements have been made for the guests to stay at more than three places in Ayodhya. Apart from this, 600 rooms have been made available by various monasteries, temples and household families.
Meanwhile, authorities of the Ayodhya Municipal Corporation said they have begun preparing for the consecration ceremony. Municipal Commissioner Vishal Singh said that fibre toilets will be installed for devotees and changing rooms will be set up for women at designated places. The 'Ram Katha Kunj' corridor will be built in the Ram Janmabhoomi complex which would showcase tableaux displaying 108 events from Lord Ram's life, he said.
(With PTI inputs)
