A police officer has been deployed for Pandit NR Vijayendra Sharma, who decided the date for the bhoomi pujan of the much-awaited Ram temple in Ayodhya, received death threats.

Pandit Sharma, who is from Karnataka’s Belgavi, has said that he has been receiving phone calls asking him to change the bhoomi pujan mahurat date or face repercussions.

He said that the people who called him asked him why he fixed August 5 as the date of the bhoomi pujan. The priest says that he performed his duty as the guru when the ceremony organisers approached him.

A complaint has been registered at Belgavi’s Tilakvadi police station.

In February, the organisers had urged Pandit Sharma to set the date for the religious ceremony. He initially picked the date of the Akshaya Tritiya in April for the laying of the foundation stone of the Ram temple construction. However, it was changed because of the lockdown that was announced due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sharma later proposed four more dates – July 29, July 31, August 1 and August 5 – all four auspicious occasions in the Sharavana Masa of the Hindu calendar.

‘August 5 is apt for Vaastu Muhurta and ideal for bhoomi pujan. The foundation has to be laid before 12 noon, after which Rahu Kala sets in,” Pandit Sharma had said.

On August 5, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone for the construction stone of the Ram temple. The event will be live telecast on Doordarshan.

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