On the main arterial road in Ayodhya, Santosh Bhargava lifted a kerosene stove he had repaired and came forward to hand it to a customer. His spine bent after 83 years of a life of struggle in the temple town. I had met him several times from the start of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement in the late 80s - till the peak 90s. He used to repair harmoniums, which were used in almost every ashram and temple to accompany bhajan singers. Tape players and then CD players ended the utility of the wind-driven musical instruments. His son abandoned him soon after marriage. From tuning musical instruments, he turned to mending stoves.
Right outside his shop, 8-year-old Sheela was using a small broom to clean the spot for her mother's tea stall on a ''
thela'' (push-cart). In one frame I could see two generations of Ayodhya, tied by the common thread of poverty unaddressed by the governments that have ruled Lucknow and Delhi - aggravated by the politics and election strategies revolving around the movement for a Ram Mandir or temple at the birthplace of Lord Ram.
Yet another election on its way to eastern UP is passing through Ayodhya. Mandir is a mere mention in the BJP book of poll promises this time. Many across the country may not think twice before saying "yes" to a temple in Ayodhya. That's faith. But not many in Ayodhya complain about the fact that protagonists of the Ram temple now say it will be built according to the constitution or a court verdict, or that even token political tantrums over the Ram temple are in the past.
Drive down Ayodhya today and people want to know why the city can't get a road to development, not why the temple can't be built.
A new generation of BJP leaders, with no connect to the Ram temple movement, have been campaigning here. The faces of the movement - LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi - have been relegated to the non-functional "Margdarshak Mandal" or mentors' group of the BJP, partially because the Ram temple issue lost traction among voters.
Yogi Adityanath, BJP's saffron-robed controversy-stoking MP from Gorakhpur was in Ayodhya. He mentioned the Ram temple as an article of faith. Uma Bharti talked of development, in a much mellower version of herself on that tumultuous December 6 in 1992 at the disputed site in Ayodhya, smiling and hugging BJP leaders as Kar Sevaks or activists brought down the three age-blackened domes of the Babri mosque - ironically the last permanent shelter the small statue had at Lord Ram's birthplace (since the Babri mosque razing, the temple operates in a makeshift tent). The BJP has been infusing steady doses of communal colour into the ongoing campaign for UP, but the party's mascot Prime Minister Narendra Modi hasn't campaigned here. Party president Amit Shah also addressed a rally in Rudauli, 51 km from Ayodhya.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad or VHP, which for years used to galvanise thousands of sadhus in the town to turn poll pied pipers, is invisible. The VHP used sadhus and heads of powerful Akaharas as a front. Mahant Ram Chandra Paramhans of the Digambar Akhara and Mahant Nrityagopal Das, who heads the Chhotichhavni Akhara, were made chairpersons of the VHP-backed Ram Mandir Nyas Samiti to keep the saints and their organisations engaged.
The VHP's firebrand head Ashok Singhal died in 2015. The outfit's
karyashala or workshop where stones were being carved for a proposed temple has been silent for years.
Not once was the slogan "
saugandh Ram ki khaate hain, mandir yahin banayenge (we pledge on Ram's name to build a temple right here)" heard during this election.
It took time, but Ayodhya, by voting the BJP out in the 2009 national election and the 2012 UP assembly election snapped the temple issue's connection with elections. The BJP's Lallu Singh is now a Lok Sabha MP. He rose as a legislator in 1991 and was re-elected in 1993, 1996, 2002 and 2007, but he lost to Samajwadi Party's Pawan Pandey in 2012.
Outside the gates of the city's bustling Saket college, a group of students ask, "One crore pilgrims come to Ayodhya each year. Smaller pilgrim towns have done much better... Why is Ayodhya decaying and it's people living without hope?"
Another student says, "This town was created by the forefathers of Lord Ram. The next spurt of activity came when the Nawabs of Awadh set up Faizabad (Ayodhya's twin city). Since then, there has been nothing. For medical help we go to Lucknow and for jobs elsewhere across India."
Politicians have realised the city's desperate cry for growth. Ahead of the polls, the Modi government promised to build a museum dedicated to the Hindu epic, the Ramayana, in Ayodhya. The Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh approved the building of a Ramlila (story of Ram) Theme Park in the holy city. The focus has shifted perhaps for now. From temple to tourism.
In the city of just 60,000, on many days in the year, outsiders far outstrip locals. But if one crore pilgrims and tourists visit Ayodhya, there is not even a single hotel here.
Ashrams and
dharmasalas (resthouses) are their only option. So tourists come for a day and choose either Gorakhpur or Lucknow for overnight stay. There is no big or medium industry in Ayodhya or Faizabad even though they are on a wide national highway.
Political parties are trying their own caste and community permutations to win votes. The BJP has fielded a man from the trading community to send a signal to the upper caste voters. The BSP has fielded a Muslim, eyeing the Dalit-minority vote strength. The Samajwadi Party has nominated Pawan Pandey.
But the discontent among voters here indicates that the verdict here will be dictated by the yearning for a giant step from the past to a future, with hope and not just faith. Rahim
miyan, as he is known in the area, has been operating a two-wheeler workshop for 60 years. Ayodhya shutdowns have always meant closing down his workshop. After chewing on our question for 30 seconds, he answers, "Why, despite promises five years ago, does Ayodhya still not have a municipal body of its own? An urban '
haat' project is pending for the last eight years... like the international stadium, or Ram Katha museum. The drainage and sewer work in town and the ghats is yet to take off. We want answers to our questions."
Standing next to him, grocery shop owner Radheyshyam Gupta says, "We aren't bothered about who has a shop next to mine. I know only one thing. Why has the number of people who used to come to my shop gone down? And it all started in the late 80s when the government in Delhi took a decision and the opposition decided to capitalise on it."
The Ram Janambhoomi movement took roots in 1989 with a
shilanyas or foundation laying at Ayodhya near the site where the 16th century Babri mosque stood before it was razed in 1992. The mosque demolition brought a cycle of riots, curfew, never-ending tension and police restrictions to the town. Twin cities Faizabad and Ayodhya slid from being a trading outpost for eastern UP and western Bihar and a temple town with free roaming '
bhakts (devotees)' bringing business to epicentres for nationwide unrest.
Locals say more than 20 influential Muslim businessmen shifted to Lucknow, Saharanpur and Bareilly from here. Influential Hindu families who used to run business establishments employing hundreds sold off properties and migrated to bigger towns as for years each election used to bring shrill mandir mania to Ayodhya. Before the polls, new war cries would resonate in the narrow lanes, echoing off the crumbling walls of old
havelis or mansions built as a home away from home by the rich and well-heeled from all over the country. Shopkeepers would close down as police and paramilitary men would take over the town.
Flag marches by armed soldiers would follow - their hobnailed boots thudding on the road. Foreheads smeared with vermillion and white paste would peep out of ashrams and temples, eyes filled with curiosity and apprehension.
The
bhakhts (devotees) would stay away - or simply leave after taking a dip in the Saryu river that flows in a calm vast expanse framing the boundary of the town. The BJP rose to power by plugging into Ayodhya - in Lucknow and in Delhi.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee rode the mandir tidal wave to win Delhi, with UP giving the BJP 57 seats in 1998. By 2001, the VHP was suffering from the three-year itch and wanted the central and state government under the BJP to provide cover to its bid to build the Ram temple. It planned a '
shilaadan' for a temple in March 2002. But Mr Vajpayee was running a 24-party coalition and the VHP's aggressive intent promised unrest among his alliance partners. He rushed a senior officer, Shatrughan Singh, from the PM's Office to negotiate with the VHP. Vajpayee's plan succeeded and the VHP had to cap its guns. Till the end of his term, Vajpayee kept the Hindutva forces on a tight leash.
(Rahul Shrivastava is Senior Editor, Political Affairs NDTV 24x7)Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of NDTV and NDTV does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.