PM Modi's statue at a temple in Gujarat
Fans of Prime Minister Narendra Modi today abandoned plans to open a temple in his honour after he tweeted that he was "appalled" by the idea.
A group of about 300 admirers of Mr Modi had spent seven lakhs on building the temple in a village 130 miles from Ahmedabad.
The temple was meant to open on Sunday for the public. Two lakhs were spent on an idol of the PM.But the trust responsible for the project decided to rededicate the temple to "Mother India" after the premier strongly criticised the plan.
"I was appalled. This is shocking and against India's great traditions," Mr Modi said, urging supporters instead to focus their energies on his flagship campaign to clean up India.
"We had built the temple to express our love and faith in Modiji," project organiser Ramesh Udhad said, "But if he is unhappy or hurt by our gesture, we will remove his statue." The land for the temple was given to the trust about five years ago, and the decision to dedicate it to the PM was taken about 12 months ago, said sources.
Mr Udhad said Sunday's opening ceremony has been cancelled; the statue of Mr Modi, who appears dressed in his trademark collarless jacket and a saffron sash, has been covered with tarpaulin.
Last year, supporters opened a temple to Congress leader Sonia Gandhi in Andhra Pradesh.