Raising "contentious issues" like the Ram temple in Ayodhya and Triple Talaq could harm the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance ahead of general elections this year, the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) has said, becoming the latest member of the ruling coalition after Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal United to voice such concerns.
"Development should be the poll plank for the NDA, which, I am confident, will help the coalition win more than 35 of the 40 seats in Bihar," LJP parliamentary board chairman Chirag Paswan said.
"I am hopeful that the election will be fought on the issue of development and contentious issues like the Ram temple and Triple Talaq will be kept at bay. These may harm the coalition's prospects," the Lok Sabha member added.
Speaking to journalists during a three-day tour of Bihar, Mr Paswan said that in his view the construction of a Ram temple at a disputed location in Ayodhya should not be an issue in the elections and referenced the BJP's defeat in three state polls recently.
Star BJP campaigners like Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, had raised the Ram temple issue during election rallies in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
"I expect from the prime minister and other NDA partners that we will continue to make development, problem of youth, farmers and deprived sections our main issue," Mr Paswan said, adding that the Supreme Court's judgment on the temple issue, when it comes, should be accepted unconditionally.
Asked about the Ram temple issue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told news agency ANI on Tuesday that the judicial process should take its course.
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