Religion is the opiate of the masses. In countries like India, it is more so since the ingrained beliefs relating to religion sometimes drive all actions of the majority of the people. Thus it was no surprise that the inauguration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Jan 22 generated so much fervour and passion from among all sections of the Hindu population. That Jan 22 was no date significant in Lord Rama's life or was an auspicious day or that the construction of the temple was incomplete was all conveniently forgotten in the drama to inaugurate the temple. The problem essentially is this that religion is manipulated to suit the agendas of people ranging in a spectrum from priests to political parties. The fall guys in all cases are the common people whose faith and belief is exploited. Thus the date Jan 22 was chosen to be early on in the build-up to the Lok Sabha elections so that the inauguration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya could be used to drum up support for the BJP. Thus the manipulation of religious matters is an incorrect practice that needs to be avoided.
