The Allahabad High Court on Friday dismissed a PIL seeking a stay on the 'Bhoomi Pujan' (foundation stone laying) event for the proposed Ram Temple at Ayodhya. The Bhoomi Pujan, to be held on August 5, will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other notable figures in the BJP.
The bench of Chief Justice Govind Mathur and Justice Saumitra Dayal Singh dismissed the PIL, noting "We expect the organisers and the government of Uttar Pradesh would ensure all the protocol applicable for social and physical distancing."
The PIL was filed by journalist-turned-activist Saket Gokhale, a Congress supporter, earlier this week. In the plea, Gokhale had said the event would violate guidelines associated with 'Unlock 2.0'. Gokhale also referred to the expected gathering of up to 300 people at the site for the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Earlier on Friday, Gokhale tweeted that he had started "getting death threats on the phone from BJP & RSS workers" for his views on the likely adverse impact of the Ram temple gathering with respect to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gokhale tweeted, "So after appearing on @ZeeNews this morning & saying that the Ram Mandir Bhumi Puja event in the middle of a pandemic is risky, I’ve started getting death threats on the phone from BJP & RSS workers. One of them said 'you’ll see our anger now'..."
In another tweet, Gokhale claimed he “Got 138 calls in the last 10 mins from BJP/RSS workers. Have their numbers…”
Responding to the Allahabad High Court's decision to reject his PIL, Gokhale claimed he did not get a chance to present his views in person, but added he respected the decision. Gokhale tweeted, "Must add here - I wasn’t informed when the letter petition was admitted. I was appearing in person & didn’t get a chance to present my grounds pre-admission/pre-dismissal. I respect the verdict of the Honorable Court & only hope this event doesn’t become a new ‘single source’.” The last line apparently refers to the risk of COVID-19 spreading as a result of the Ram temple event.
Gokhale has alleged the BJP was attempting to use the Ram temple event for politics.
A trenchant critic of the BJP, Gokhale has in recent weeks accused BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra of malpractices during demonetisation.
In December last year, Gokhale started a campaign to target "hate speech mongers", focusing on holding culpable rightwing leaders who purportedly made provocative utterances.