West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is unlikely to attend the inauguration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya in January, a senior TMC leader said on Wednesday.

According to TMC sources, neither Banerjee nor any representative of the West Bengal government or the party will be present at the programme scheduled on January 22.

"There is no question of Mamata Banerjee or any other representative of the TMC attending the Ram Mandir inauguration at Ayodhya next month. We don't believe in mixing politics with religion," a senior party leader privy to the development told PTI.

The Ram temple will be inaugurated on January 22, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and more than 6,000 people expected to attend the grand "Pran Pratistha" ceremony.

CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury has turned down an invitation to attend the inauguration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, the party said on Tuesday while underlining its belief that religion is a personal choice.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.