• I will go to Sankardeva's birthplace when I get the opportunity: Rahul Gandhi
  
• I cannot go to Sankardeva's birthplace but others can during a law and order crisis: Rahul Gandhi in Nagaon
  
• Rahul Gandhi, other Congress leaders sit on dharna in Assam's Nagaon after former party chief is stopped from visiting Batadrawa Than

In a surprising turn of events, Batadrawa Than authorities is known to have decided to allow local MPs, MLAs to visit Sankardev Satra temple in Assam's Nagaon without Rahul Gandhi on January 22 when the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple will take place at Ayodhya after the Congress leader slammed temple authorities for refusing him permission to visit the Batadrawa Than during the ongoing consecration ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Expressing his disappointment, Gandhi criticised the decision, questioning the interference in his visit during such a significant religious occasion. The temple, located at the birthplace of Assamese icon Srimanta Sankardeva, has become the center of controversy as authorities cited the Ram temple consecration as the reason for denying early access to the Congress leader.

Gandhi, along with other Congress leaders, was stopped at Haiboragaon today, and not allowed to proceed further. The former Congress chief was scheduled to pay obeisance to the local deity before starting his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra on Monday.

Mahila Congress leaders subsequently sat on a dharna to protest against denial of permission to Gandhi to visit the temple. The former Congress chief also joined the dharna.

Authorities said Gandhi will be allowed permission to visit the temple only at 3 PM.

Gandhi questioned the police on why he was being stopped from visiting the temple.

"Will PM Modi now decide who will visit a temple and when," Gandhi said.

The Batadrawa Than is located at the birthplace of Assamese icon Srimanta Sankardeva, a social-religious reformer of the 15th-16th century.

In a letter to Batadrawa's Congress MLA Shibamoni Bora on Sunday afternoon, the managing committee's president Jogendra Nath Dev Mahanta said that on the occasion of the Ram temple's consecration, several organisations have planned devotional programmes at the premises of the Than.

"Several thousands of people are expected to visit the place and as such we cannot allow Gandhi to enter the premises before 3 pm," he said.

"We had received a letter from Bora regarding the Congress MP's visit and we extend a warm welcome to him but we cannot allow him to enter the premises before 3 pm," he said.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the committee, he added.

Earlier, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had also said that Gandhi should avoid visiting Batadrawa on January 22 as there can be no competition between Lord Ram and the medieval-age Vaishnav saint.

Reacting to Sarma's statement, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh had said that Gandhi would visit the Than as planned, maintaining that no politics should be done over it.