Photo : Collected
About 80 chartered flights have landed at the new international airport of India's holy city of Ayodhya for Monday’s partial opening of the controversial grand temple for one of Hinduism’s most revered deities, Lord Ram.
Ayodhya’s airport can barely accommodate the influx of private jets. “The planes will depart after dropping guests,” airport manager Saurabh Singh said.
The temple was built over an ancient razed mosque, and most political opposition leaders are boycotting the temple's opening, saying it doesn't befit a secular India.
However, the list of attendees boasts some of India's most influential people: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, industrialists Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani and Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan.
Ahead of the upcoming general election, Modi’s Hindu nationalist party is using the elaborate consecration ceremony to lobby the country's Hindu majority.
