BJP spokespersons were huddled in a day-long meeting at the party headquarters on Monday, with preparations for the messaging from the party on the forthcoming Supreme Court verdict in the Ayodhya case being the focus of the meeting’s agenda.
Monday’s brainstorming session follows a series of meetings that Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat held last week on the same subject.
The message that has gone out is clear: that no extreme reactions are to be expressed over the verdict, whichever way it goes.
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Mr. Bhagwat had also asked all the affiliated organisations of the RSS to hold meetings across the country to ensure that calm is maintained throughout, and to avoid triumphal marches or celebrations of any kind in the event of a favourable verdict.
The court has reserved orders in the case, and with Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi set to retire on November 17, a ruling is expected within two weeks.
The BJP has also directed its spokespersons to avoid TV news debates in the interim period so that no inflammatory statements come from the party on the issue. The RSS had earlier cancelled a meeting of the organisation’s top brass, scheduled to be held between October 31 and November 4, in order to counsel calm. The “Ekal Kumbh”, scheduled for November 17 in Lucknow, has also been put “on hold”.
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A docket with a time line and some legal nuances of the case was also circulated among the party’s spokespersons at the meeting, which was also attended by BJP working president J.P. Nadda.