The Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has planned a second consecration (pran pratishtha) of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Thursday, prompting the Opposition to allege that the BJP government was trying to keep the euphoria around the shrine alive to derive maximum political mileage.

The ritual to set up the Raja Ram Darbar (Court of Lord Ram) on the first floor of the temple was started on Tuesday. Besides Ram, the idols of Sita, Laxman, Bharat and Shatrughna have also been placed in the court.

The idol of Ram Lalla was consecrated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the ground floor of the temple on January 22, 2024, when the shrine was still incomplete.

The idols of Shiv, Ganpati, Hanuman, Surya, Bhagwati, Annapurna and Sheshavatar that are placed in the smaller shrines that encircle the main temple will also be consecrated on Thursday.

Champat Rai, general secretary of the trust, said: “Chief minister Yogi Adityanath will be the chief guest on the concluding day of the programme on Thursday. I request the people not to rush to Ayodhya after hearing about the pran pratishtha. The weather is adverse at the moment. They can come here to offer prayers after summer is over.”

He said Pandit Jayprakash of Chandauli would conduct the rituals with the help of 120 priests. The puja will be hosted by trust member Anil Mishra and his wife, he added.

“The first day’s rituals on Tuesday started with panchang puja and hawan. It will conclude on June 5 on the auspicious occasion of Jayeshtha Shukla Paksh with the last puja to be conducted between 11.25am and 11.40am as per the advice of astrologers. Praveen Sharma and Indradev Acharya will be the main priests on the final day’s puja,” Rai added.

Over a dozen small temples and the second floor of the shrine are yet to be completed. Once completed, the temple would measure 380 feet in length, 250 feet in width and 161 feet in height. The temple has 392 pillars and 44 doors.

Congress leader Dwijendra Tripathi said: “The BJP’s misuse of religion is no secret. They will keep organising one or the other function in Ayodhya for political mileage. But this gimmick will not work in future elections. People are fed up with them.”

Over 8,000 industrialists, film stars and other influential people were invited to the consecration ceremony last year.