Uttar Pradesh 2017 elections: BJP will remain silent on Ram temple issue, says BJP MP Vinay Katiyar

Against the backdrop of the recent Supreme Court ruling holding as "corrupt practice" seeking votes in name of religion, BJP MP Vinay Katiyar on 9 January said the party will "remain silent" on Ram temple issue during Uttar Pradesh Assembly poll campaign.

The Rajya Sabha MP told PTI,"Though it is the matter of our personal belief, but belief also comes in the criteria of religion, so we will remain silent on Ram and mandir issue during election campaign."

In a majority verdict last week, the Supreme Court had held that any appeal for votes on the ground of "religion, race, caste, community or language" amounted to "corrupt practice" under the election law provision.

Katiyar was the face of the Ram temple movement in Ayodhya in the early 1990s. He has said in the past that the Modi government should "move to resolve" the matter without waiting for a Supreme Court verdict on the disputed site.

However, Vijay Bahadur Pathak, the BJP's state spokesman, kept refused to comment when asked weather BJP leaders will raise the Ram temple issue in the forthcoming polls.

"Ram temple is not a political issue, it is our belief," he added.