New Delhi [India], November 26 : India on Wednesday slammed Pakistan over its remarks on flag-hoisting at Lord Ram temple in Ayodhya, rejecting its comments "with the contempt they deserve" and asking it to turn "its gaze inwards and focus on its own abysmal human rights records".
Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, responding to questions at the weekly media briefing, said Pakistan has no moral standing to lecture others.
"We have seen the reported remarks and reject them with the contempt they deserve. As a country with a deeply stained record of bigotry, repression and systemic mistreatment of its minorities, Pakistan has no moral standing to lecture others. Rather than delivering hypocritical homilies, Pakistan would do better to turn its gaze inwards and focus on its own abysmal human rights records," he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi hoisted a saffron flag on the "shikhar" of the sacred Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Temple in Ayodhya on Tuesday. The Dhwajarohan Utsav symbolised the completion of the temple's construction.
The programme took place on the auspicious Panchami of the Shukla Paksha in the month of Margashirsha.
This date also marks the martyrdom day of Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, the ninth Sikh Guru, who meditated in Ayodhya for 48 uninterrupted hours in the 17th century, further enhancing the spiritual significance of the day.
The right-angled triangular flag, measuring ten feet in height and twenty feet in length, bears the image of a radiant Sun symbolizing the brilliance and valour of Lord Ram, with an 'Om' inscribed on it along with image of Kovidara tree. The sacred saffron flag conveys a message of dignity, unity, and cultural continuity, embodying the ideals of Ram Rajya.
The flag was hoisted atop a "shikhar" constructed in the traditional North Indian Nagara architectural style, while the surrounding 800-metre Parkota, a circumambulatory enclosure built around the temple, designed in the South Indian architectural tradition, showcases the temple's architectural diversity.
The temple complex features 87 intricately carved stone episodes from the life of Bhagwan Shri Ram based on the Valmiki Ramayana on the outer walls of the main temple, and 79 bronze-cast episodes from Indian culture placed along the enclosure walls.