Sonepat, June 21: Congress and the BJP are creating "hurdles" in the construction of a Ram Temple at Ayodhya and creating "terror" among the Muslims for their own selfish motives, Swami Nischalanand, Jagat Guru Shankaracharya of Puri Peethadhishwar has alleged. The leaders of the parties were "befooling" the people of the country on this issue which has become "the issue of power and struggle for them," he told reporters here last evening.

He said that both the Congress and the BJP "did not want to solve this issue for their selfish motives."

He also alleged that the successive prime ministers had also failed to pave the way for the construction of the temple, instead they had "complicated" the issue on one pretext or the other for their own motives.
The swami charged the former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao with offering money to the tune of Rs 65 crore to three Shankaracharyas for seeking their help in his own favour but they declined to accept the money and did not side with him on the temple issue.

Bureau Report