Modi fulfils key pledge to India’s Hindus with opening of grand Ram Temple on site of razed Babri mosque

Building a ‘Vatican for Hindus’ has long been one of the biggest talking points for India’s Hindu nationalist movement, but its construction on the site of the illegally demolished Babri Masjid mosque remains a source of pain for India’s Muslim minority. Namita Singh meets residents and pilgrims in Ayodhya, the holy city at the centre of the country’s religious divide

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi walking up the stairs to officially consecrate the Ram temple in Ayodhya (screengrab) (NARENDRA MODI YOUTUBE CHANNEL/AF)

The scaffolding on the vast Hindu temple being built in the northern Indian town of Ayodhya can be seen from a distance. With prime minister Narendra Modi due to lead the consecration of the Ram Temple on Monday, workers were still climbing up the main dome last week to apply the finishing touches ahead of the grand state event.

The frenzied last-minute preparations, and a large police presence, do nothing to dampen the spirits of a stream of exuberant devotees making their way to the disputed site, which is believed by many to be the birthplace of the most revered Hindu deity, Lord Ram.

The inauguration ceremony on Monday will fulfil a decades-long Hindu nationalist pledge just months before Modi and his right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are set to seek a third term in power in a national election. With the prime minister due in the city alongside thousands of religious leaders and powerful figures from India’s elite, streets that were earlier congested and worn down are witnessing an elaborate makeover.