Ram Temple issue not an 'election stunt': Subramanian Swamy

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy on Saturday said that the issue surrounding the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya should not be seen as a political stunt.

"Suppose we don't do it this year, the next year is the election and then we have to do it the following year which is 2018. Then you will say it is for the Lok Sabha elections. Every year there is an election. So, we can't stop our activities just because there is going to be an election," Swamy said.

"The public is quite sensible. They will know that it is an election stunt or not. The whole country wants, 99 percent of the Hindus today want the Mandir to be built and most of the Christians and the Muslims are not opposed to it because we are not against to build the Masjid across the Saryu river in Ayodhya," he added.

He also asserted that there would be no problem as far as protest outside the seminar in the Delhi University was peaceful. Swamy had earlier said that the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya would begin by the end of 2016 with the cooperation of the Muslim community. Meanwhile, the National Students Union of India (NSUI), AISA and the KYS are protesting at the venue of the seminar.