Five months after the grand inauguration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, head priest Acharya Satyendra Das on Monday said that the roof of the Mandir is “leaking” amidst the heavy rainfall in the city, adding there is no proper way to drain it.
The chief priest of Ram Mandir told ANI that the temple’s roof started leaking right after the first rains. Acharya Satyendra Das said water leakage started specifically near the location where the idol is kept. “Attention should be paid to the matter and to find out what was missing. It is very important. There is no space to drain water out of the temple, “ Das added.
He further said, “If the rain intensifies, it would be difficult to offer prayers at the temple.”
While expressing ‘surprise’ at the incident, Das said, “It is very surprising. So many engineers are here and the Pran Pratishtha was held on January 22, but water is leaking from the roof. Nobody would’ve thought this,” the head priest told news agency PTI.
Meanwhile, after getting the cognizant of the leakage, Nripendra Mishra, the chairperson of the Sri Ram Mandir Construction Committee, rushed to the spot and confirmed that rainwater had been leaking from the first floor. However, he gave instructions for repairing and waterproofing the roof.
Mishra, however, clarified that this was expected as the ‘Guru Mandap’ is exposed.
“I am in Ayodhya. I saw the rainwater dropping from the first floor. This is expected because Guru Mandap is exposed to the sky as the second floor and completion of Shikhar will cover this opening,” Mishra told ANI in a statement. “I also saw some seepage from the conduit as this work on the first floor is in progress. On completion, the conduit will be closed. There is no drainage in the Sanctum Santorum because all the Mandaps have measured slope for clearance of water, and the water in Sanctum Santorum is manually absorbed.”
“Moreover, the devotees are not performing Abhishek on the deity. There is no design or construction issue. The Mandaps that are open may get rainwater drops, which was debated, but the decision was to keep them open as per Nagar architectural norms,” Mishra added.
The Ram Temple in Ayodhya was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 22.
Criticism from Political Parties
The opposition Congress party accused the ruling BJP of “corruption” in the temple’s construction. Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Rai alleged that the BJP has made Ayodhya a “hub of corruption by getting second-rate construction done in a hurry only to gain electoral benefits”.
“Be it the coffin of the martyrs or the temple of God, all these have become opportunities for corruption for the BJP. Even the symbols of faith and purity in the country are just opportunities for loot for them,” Rai accused the BJP in a statement on Monday.
Ayodhya’s Monsoon
Ayodhya has been witnessing heavy monsoon showers since Saturday. The showers have caused severe waterlogging in the city. Since the wee hours of Sunday, all 13 streets connected to Rampath have been waterlogged after overnight rain. Sewage water has also entered many houses on the connected streets.
In another incident, a purported video of the wall collapse of the new boundary at the newly inaugurated Ayodhya Dham railway station was doing the rounds over the internet. The video was also shared on the official page of Congress.
However, according to PIB, the collapsed wall was not part of the new station infrastructure but belonged to the old station area. PIB clarified that the collapse was caused by excavation activities by a private individual and waterlogging in a nearby private area.
