Former Madhya Pradesh chief minister, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, on Wednesday came down heavily on the Congress for declining the invite to the Pran Pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya on January 22. Speaking to ANI on Wednesday, Chouhan said the Congress's rejection of the invitation to the opening of the grand Ram Temple was akin to rejecting or disowing the country's identity.

"Ram is our Lord. He represents the soul and the identity of Bharat. The turning down of the invitation to the Pran Pratishtha by the Congress is a rejection of India's identity and culture. It is because of such positions that the Congress takes that it has been reduced to the margins today," the former Madhya Pradesh CM said.