NY Times Square billboard finally beams Ram Mandir along with the Hindu deity

The billboard displaying Lord Ram might be seen as a big achievement for the identity of the Hindus across the world and especially those in India who had been long awaiting the Ram Mandir's construction in UP's Ayodhya, believed to be the birthplace of Lord Ram.

The billboard displays a 3-D image of the yet-to-be built temple in Northern India and the visage of Lord Ram with his bow and arrows.

Earlier in the day, fake news and images were circulating on the display at Times Square amid previous reports that the move to have a display at the iconic venue in New York's Manhatten, which is often referred to as the Crossroads of the World, were foiled by rival groups of Hindus in the US and the ad agency responsible for the same has  backtracked on beaming Lord Ram's images.

The billboard appears on a day when  Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with UP CM Yogi Adityanath and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat participated in the 'Bhoomi-Pujan' ceremony which marked the foundation for the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

Times Square in New York City is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment centre and neighbourhood in the Midtown Manhattan section. Brightly lit by numerous billboards and advertisements, the place is a major attraction for tourists across the world.

The Ram temple movement has already proved how an issue of civil dispute over a piece of land gradually became one of the most defining aspects of politics in contemporary India.

One of the longest-drawn legal battles in the nation’s history, the Ayodhya issue has created political turmoil in the country starting from mid 1980s after the Rajiv Gandhi government ordered it to unlock the Ram Janmabhoomi site. On Dec 6, 1992, the Babri Masjid structure was demolished by thousands of Hindu ‘kar sevaks’ (volunteers), triggering turmoil in India which saw the rise of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in national politics. 

But everything was put to rest after the Supreme Court ruling on Nov 9, 2019 that the disputed land at Ayodhya be given to the Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas, drawing curtains on a 70-year legal battle in independent India and 90 years during the British rule.