Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the historic Ramlila function at Aishbagh maidan in Lucknow on Tuesday.
Mr. Modi will land at Lucknow airport at around 5:30 p.m. after which he will proceed to the venue in Aishbagh. He will participate in a 'Ram aarti' ritual and deliver a short speech before watching the final act of the Ramlila — the slaying of Ravana.
Mr. Modi will, however, leave before the main spectacle of the evening, the 'Ravan Dahan' or burning of effigy of Ravan, BJP vice-president and Lucknow Mayor Dinesh Sharma confirmed.
Each year, a theme is attached to the burning of Ravan’s effigy. This year, interestingly, it is atankvaad ka samool naash (destruction of the root of terrorism).
This is the first ever visit to the function by a sitting Prime Minister, provoking Opposition parties to accuse the BJP of politicising the festival. Earlier premiers have celebrated the festival in Delhi.
‘Election stunt’ Opposition parties have described Mr. Modi’s scheduled presence an “election stunt” and accused the BJP of using the Hindu festival as a launch pad for its 2017 campaign.
Taking a dig at Mr. Modi, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said, “If elections were being held in Bihar then the Ravana would have been burnt there.”
The sharpest attack has come from BSP chief Mayawati who termed Mr. Modi’s visit a political stunt. She alleged that the surgical strikes could have been deliberately delayed by the government in the aftermath of the Uri attacks in order to take political mileage out of the nationalist fervour it would trigger.
However, Mr. Sharma, who is also a patron of the Aishbagh Ramlila committee, which organises the event, dimissed all allegations of politicisation of the festival.
“The themes for the event are fixed by the Ramlila committee, one year well in advance. They decide themes for three years in one sitting. In previous years, it was swachhta and paryavaran [cleanliness and environment], it is a coincidence that is is terrorism this year. It has nothing to do with politics or the surgical strikes,” Mr. Sharma said.
“What we mean by terrorism is that Ravan was an attankhi [terrorist]...his atankhi character must be destroyed,” Mr. Sharma said.
Observers have also argued that picking Lucknow and not Varanasi, Mr. Modi’s Lok Sabha constituency, could be Mr. Modi’s way of projecting Mr. Sharma, a Brahmin, as the party’s CM face. But the Lucknow Mayor dismissed it outright. “I have never had any such wish. There are a dozen people senior to me. I am an ordinary karyakarta who works to fufill the targets given to him.”
The history
Harishchandra Agarwal, convenor of the Ramlila committee, said the Aishbagh Dussehra was an example of the “communal harmony” in the city.
He claims the Aishbagh Ramlila dates back to the 16th century saint-poet Tulsidas, who wrote the Ramcharitramanas. Tulsidas started the Ramlila as he thought that translating the Ramcharitramanas into Hindi and Awadhi was not enough. He decided to re-tell the story to common people through art and play and handed over the responsibility to the local saints and seers before leaving for his travels, Mr. Agarwal said.
The Ramlila acquired a permanent venue thanks to the patronage of the Nawabs, especially Nawab Asaf-ud-Daulah, who also attended the programme during his time in the 18th century. “Nawab Asaf-ud-Daulah donated 6.5 acre land, each for the Eidgah and Ramlila Maidan. What could be a better example of Lucknow’s syncretic culture?” asked Mr. Agarwal. The Ramlila was funded by the State treasury during the times of the Nawabs, Mr. Sharma added. The Eidgah, Lucknow’s largest Sunni mosque, is located across the maidan. Also, a number of workers and artisans who prepare the Ravan's effigy belong to a minority community.
