Zee Media Bureau
Lucknow: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has vowed to set off its Chaurasai Kosi Parikrama around Ayodhya to revive its demand for a Ram temple.
On Thursday, VHP national secretary Prakash Sharma said that the leaders associated with the organisation will arrive for the Yatra at the given time and will go forward with it.
The Uttar Pradesh government has heightened security and sealed the borders of six districts after the VHP refused to shelve its procession.
The proposed yatra was earlier banned by the state government.
"Our senior leaders have requested the UP government to review its decision," Sharma said, asking: "What kind of secularism is this that we are being stopped from practicing our religious fundamental rights?"
An elaborate security plan is being chalked out to foil the event, set to begin on August 25.
Home department officials said that under no circumstance would the Vishwa Hindu Parishad event be allowed to take place.
The government has decided to deploy 10 companies of the Rapid Action Force (RSF) and 12 companies of the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) in the region.
Inspector General of Police Raj Kumar Vishwakarma told a news agency that orders have been issued to prevent people from other states from reaching Ayodhya.
The VHP has refused to back off, saying the yatra is part of Hindu beliefs and tradition.
Slamming the government for the clampdown, Swamy Chinmayanand accused Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav of working under pressure from his party`s Muslim leaders.
He came down hard on Urban Development Minister Mohammad Azam Khan, accusing him of "arm-twisting the Samajwadi Party leadership into banning the 84-kosi parikrama".
Uttar Pradesh Public Works Department Minister Shivpal Yadav refuted the charges and said the government was committed to maintain communal harmony.
(With IANS inputs)
