New Delhi: There is no discord between the Ram Temple trust and Hindu seers, particularly the four Shankaracharyas, over the consecration ceremony at the Ayodhya temple on January 22, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) said on Thursday, even as it rejected allegations of bias in sending out invitations of the mega event to political leaders.

“As we invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we also invited opposition leaders, including the leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha. We invited some leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party, so we invited presidents of all other parties, too,” VHP international working president Alok Kumar said.

The leader of the VHP, an offshoot of the RSS, which was at the forefront of the Ramjanmabhoomi movement, lashed out at opposition parties for alleging the consecration ceremony was being used by the ruling BJP for political gains and for polarising the electorate ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

“There is no truth in the opposition’s claims that the event has been politicised or taken over by the RSS [Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh] and the BJP,” Kumar said.

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It came a day after the opposition Congress said its president Mallikarjun Kharge, senior leader Sonia Gandhi and leader of the party in the Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, would not attend the ceremony.

“Religion is a personal matter. But the RSS/BJP have long made a political project of the temple in Ayodhya. The inauguration of the incomplete temple by the leaders of the BJP and the RSS has been obviously brought forward for electoral gain,” the party said in a statement on Wednesday.

Responding to Congress leaders skipping the mega event, the VHP chief said: “There seems to be volte face. Earlier, there were reports that Sonia Gandhi will attend the event, but it seems they may have weighed in on the decision based on the reaction of the minority community and Hindus.”

The VHP chief also rejected claims of discord between the four Shankaracharyas — the highest Hindu religious gurus — and the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra, the trust overseeing the construction of the temple in Ayodhya.

Referring to the statements issued by the Shankaracharyas of Sringeri and Dwarka mutts, who have welcomed the consecration of the temple, Kumar said they would visit at a later date. The other two Shankaracharyas have declined the invitation for the January 22 event. Puri Gowardhan Peeth Shankaracharya, Swami Nishchalanand Saraswati, has said he will not attend the event because it was “against the scriptures”. Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, the Shankaracharya of Jyotir Peeth (Uttarakhand) has also declined to attend, saying he is against the consecration of the idol even as the temple work is incomplete.

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Stating the VHP welcomes those who have consented to attend the ceremony, which will be streamed live across India and abroad, Kumar added the organisation respects the decision of those who have declined to be part of it.

“This is not a war, there is no haar-jeet (loss or win), it is a struggle of over 24 generations. Our generation is fortunate that the temple is ready. There are no words to express this, but that it is Bharat ke swabhiman ka punarasthapan (restoration of India’s self-respect) which will bring us out of the colonial mindset,” the VHP leader said.

Kumar also sought to downplay the controversy over trust general secretary Champat Rai’s statement last month that BJP stalwart LK Advani, who was the face of the Ramjanmabhoomi movement, and party veteran Murali Manohar Joshi were being asked to stay away from the event on account of their age and health concerns.

“When we went to invite Advani ji, he said he will attend the pran pratistha (consecration). His family had some concerns about the travel given his advanced age and health. We assured them that all the logistics would be taken care of,” Kumar said.

On Thursday, Kumar, along with temple construction committee chairperson Nripendra Misra, invited Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar for the consecration ceremony. Dhankhar said he will visit the temple with his family and soon convey the details about his travel plans to trust.