Yogi Govt Plans Next Cabinet Meeting In Ayodhya; Opposition Alleges BJP Playing 'Mandir Card' Ahead Of 2024 Lok Sabha Polls

The Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government has announced its decision to hold the next cabinet meeting in the holy city of Ayodhya ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

While sharing the information related to the decision, UP minister Suresh Khanna said out of the total 21 proposals, 20 were approved while the remaining one would be cleared in the next cabinet meeting in Ayodhya.

Nevertheless, the state government has not yet determined the exact date for this meeting.

However, the Opposition has called the decision “politically motivated”, stating that the move was aimed to keep the Ram temple issue in the limelight.

According to a News18 report, the government officials have clarified that the reason behind holding the next cabinet meeting in Ayodhya is to give nod to several developmental & beautification projects in the city.

However, the opposition found the “clarification” less convincing, and called it a “politically driven move”.

“It is purely a politically driven move as the Yogi-led BJP government wants to keep the issue of Ram temple and Ayodhya in the limelight until the 2024 Lok Sabha Polls. This is just an attempt to keep the issue alive,” said Udaiveer Singh, senior leader of Samajwadi Party (SP), News18 reported.

Singh went on to accuse the BJP of exploiting the 'Temple' strategy.

“Be it in Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthan assembly polls, the party is playing the ‘Mandir Card’ heavily to woo the voters. It wants to do the same tactic even in the 2024 Lok Sabha Polls in UP," he said.

Political analysts note that this isn't the first instance of the BJP conducting a cabinet meeting in a city other than the state capital, Lucknow. In its prior term, the government led by Yogi Adityanath organised a cabinet session in Prayagraj before the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections.