From Gorakshpeeth to Ram Janmabhoomi

From Gorakshpeeth to Ram Janmabhoomi

Varanasi: The foundation laying of Ram Mandir by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the birthplace of Lord Ram in Ayodhya on August 5, 2020 will be the culmination of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement spearheaded by the mahants of Gorakshpeeth in Gorakhpur presently headed by the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

In fact, Gorakshpeeth, which had been epicentre of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement since the period of Mahant Digvijaynath, played as an important role in the movement. According to the records, the movement itself started under the leadership of Mahant Digvijaynath, who played a lead role in December 1949 which culminated in the appearance of idol of Ram Lalla at the site. Mahant Digvijaynath, who had joined the Hindu Mahasabha in 1937, was later elected as the MP from Gorakhpur in 1967 on Hindu Mahasabha ticket.

Later, his successor Mahant Avaidyanath played an important role in the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. He was a leader of the movement, founding the Sri Ramjanmabhoomi Mukti Yagna Samiti in 1984. In September of that year, the Samiti launched a religious procession from Sitamarhi in Bihar to Ayodhya, with the mission of ‘liberating’ the Ram temple. He had given sermons exhorting the listeners to give votes only to those parties that promised to liberate the Hindu sacred places.

From Gorakshpeeth to Ram Janmabhoomi

In 1986 when the then Faizabad DM gave orders to open the locks of the disputed site to allow Hindus to offer prayers there, Mahant Avaidyanath was present at the site. Under his leadership, Gorakhspeeth had become the centre of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement.

Mahant Avaidyanath was also a politician of the Hindu Mahasabha and later Bharatiya Janata Party being elected to the Lok Sabha from Gorakhpur for four times. He was also elected MLA from Maniram assembly constituency for five times. He was the mentor and guru of UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath, who succeeded him as the head of Gorakshpeeth.

After the death of Mahant Avaidyanath in 2014, Yogi Adityanath was made the head of Gorakshpeeth. He had been the MP from Gorakhpur for five consecutive terms since 1998. Yogi visited Ayodhya many times. Now, Yogi will witness the historic moment of foundation stone laying ceremony, the cherished dream of his predecessors. He visited Ayodhya to review the preparations for the foundation laying ceremony.