Ayodhya dispute: No scope for ordinance on constructing Ram Mandir, 'efforts being made' to reach consensus, says Manohar Lal Khattar

New Delhi: Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar Friday said there is no scope for an ordinance on building Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya, while asserting that the temple should be constructed at the birthplace of Lord Ram and efforts are to build consensus on the issue. Addressing a press conference at the Red Fort to announce the 17-day-long Gita Jubilee Festival in Kurukshetra from 7 December, he said a number of dignitaries, including BJP president Amit Shah, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj and former president Pranab Mukherjee attend the event. [caption id=“attachment_4187493” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar. PTI[/caption] “The Haryana government’s efforts to promote the teachings of holy book at the global level has started yielding results as for the first time the festival will be organised in Mauritius in February next year. Mauritius will be the partner country in the celebrations of upcoming International Gita Mahotsav,” Khattar said. To a question on building Ram temple in Ayodhya, he said, “The temple should be built at the birthplace of Lord Ram. Efforts are being made to build consensus on this issue to ensure that the temple is built at the birthplace of Lord Ram.” “There is no scope for an ordinance on it,” he said. Sharing the details of the Gita Jubilee Festival, Khattar said the main event would be organised from 13 to 18 December, which would be attended by Haryana Governor Satyadeo Narain, Tripura Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki, Odisha Governor Ganeshi Lal and others. Shi Sri Ravi Shankar, Swami Ramdev, Shankracharya, various foreign dignitaries, including the Art and Culture Minister of Mauritius and diplomats of 15 countries would attend the event, he said. The Haryana chief minister also informed reporters that ‘Gita Sansad’ would be held in more than 30 colleges of the state for the first time, in which discussion would be held on the scripture to effectively disseminate the message of the Gita among students. The International Gita Mahotsav is organised every year by the state government in collaboration with the Kurukshetra Development Board (KDB) at Kurukshetra.