New Delhi, Jan 17 (IANS): Countering Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's statement that the Ram Temple Pran Pratishtha ceremony scheduled to be held on January 22 is a "political event", Union Minister Anurag Thakur on Wednesday said that Congress and the other constituents of the INDIA bloc never miss an opportunity to disrespect Hindus due to the appeasement politics.

On Wednesday, after participating in the 'Swachhata Sewa' programme organised nationwide by the BJP under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiative, Thakur addressed reporters at the Valmiki Temple premises in Delhi.

Criticising the statements of Rahul Gandhi, Congress, and other leaders of the INDIA bloc, Thakur stated that one after another, leaders of the ‘ghamandia' alliance have made remarks, sometimes talking about trampling of Sanatan Dharma, and at other times making baseless statements about Hindus.

Thakur accused them of spreading lies about the location of the temple, mentioning that these people had claimed until yesterday that the temple was being built 3 kilometers away, but now this has also proven to be false.

The Union Minister alleged that neither have these leaders ever acknowledged Lord Ram, nor do they respect Him today.

He said that the leaders of the opposition coalition deny the existence of Lord Ram and oppose the Ram Temple for only indulging in politics, staying in the headlines.