The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday accused Congress leader P Chidambaram of mocking the idea of a Ram temple in Ayodhya and the statue of Vallabhbhai Patel that has been built in Gujarat’s Narmada district, and sought an apology from Congress President Rahul Gandhi, PTI reported.

In a tweet earlier in the day, Chidambaram compared the BJP’s 2014 election campaign promise of development with its “new promise” of temples and statues.

The tweet was “highly irresponsible and very provocative”, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said. It is a case of “classic hypocrisy” that a senior Congress leader was making such remarks while Rahul Gandhi was portraying himself as a devotee of Shiva, the minister said. “Please stop it,” Prasad added. “Do not play with sentiments.”

In his tweet, Chidambaram said: “At the beginning of five years, the promise is for Development, Jobs and Money in every citizen’s bank account. Nothing achieved, at the end of five years, the new promise is for grand temples, giant statues and doles.”

Prasad also objected to Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge’s comment comparing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and German dictator Adolf Hitler. The BJP runs on democratic principles but Kharge cannot take one step without permission of his party’s ruling family, the minister added.

Meanwhile, the BJP’s Bihar chief Nityanand Rai accused previous Congress governments of hatching a conspiracy to prevent the construction of the Ram temple and a “Ram Setu”, PTI reported. He said no one should object to the temple’s construction in Ayodhya since millions of people across the world want it.

“Congress should apologise to the nation for having conspired to deny the existence of a temple in Ayodhya, followed by a similar conspiracy years later in case of Ram Setu,” Rai added.

Demand for Ram temple grows louder

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya told PTI on Monday that a verdict on the Ayodhya land dispute may be a prerogative of the Supreme Court but a grand temple for Ram will be built soon. “It will now be impossible to install a single stone bearing the name of Mughal emperor Babur,” he said.

The Supreme Court, which is hearing the land dispute case, has adjourned the matter to January. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and other religious leaders are now pressing the government to enact an ordinance for the construction of the temple. According to reports, the Uttar Pradesh government led by Adityanath is likely to announce the construction of a 151-metre tall Ram statue in Ayodhya this week. The statue is likely to be built on the banks of the Sarayu river.

On Sunday, Union minister Uma Bharti had claimed that any talk of constructing a mosque on the periphery of the Ram temple would make Hindus intolerant. Another minister, Giriraj Singh, said no power in the world could stop the temple’s construction in Ayodhya. The Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti, an umbrella body of Hindu religious leaders, on Sunday asked the government to bring in legislation or an ordinance for the construction of the Ram temple.

On Monday, Karnataka minister BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan said Muslims were not against Ram temple at Ayodhya but both a temple and a mosque should be constructed, PTI reported. “What we want is peace,” the Congress MLA said. “Muslims have never opposed Ram Mandir. We have two wishes, one side we want Masjid, one side we want Ram Mandir.”