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As planning goes in full swing for the foundation stone-laying of the first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi, rumours are rife that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be flying to Abu Dhabi as the chief guest for the ceremony.
Though a section of the Indian media has reported that the PM is expected to fly to Abu Dhabi to inaugurate the BAPS temple on April 20, temple authorities have rubbished the rumours.
"As far as we know, there is no truth in it. We have no information about it," a temple representative told Khaleej Times.
"We have not had any interactions on that level. We have put out the names of all the VVIPs on our press release. Those are the people who will be attending the ceremony. If we knew the Prime Minister is attending, his name would have been there."
The representative added that he was not aware of any change of plans for the coming days.
The press release sent by the temple said that the 'Shilanyas' ceremony would be presided over by the spiritual leader of the BAPS, Mahant Swami Maharaj, "in the presence of the leadership of the nation".
The Shilanyas ceremony is a sacred Hindu ritual wherein the first foundation stones are sanctified and fixed on the ground as the base of the temple.
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Indian Ambassador to the UAE Navdeep Singh Suri also denied any knowledge of a potential visit by Prime Minister Modi in April.
"Not that I know of. There is nothing in the pipeline now."
But many Indian media outlets have reported that talks are under way between the UAE and India to organise a Modi visit to Abu Dhabi.
Economic Times reported that "delicate negotiations" are on between the two countries as the PM's visit will fall in the middle of the Indian elections that will begin on April 11.
"Modi likely to inaugurate Abu Dhabi temple in April," tweeted former Indian ambassador to the UAE K.C. Singh on Monday (April 1).
Modi had unveiled the model structure of the temple during his February 2018 visit to the UAE. He witnessed the live streaming of the ground-breaking ceremony, in which the sanctification of the land was performed at the temple site on February 11.
The temple, sitting on a 14-acre land at Abu Mureikhah in Al Rahba off the Abu Dhabi-Sweihan road complex, will welcome thousands of devotees on April 20. Worshippers will have the opportunity to have 'darshan' of the stone and sprinkle flowers as a form of worship from 2pm onwards.
"This complex is going to be a special place which has been designed to be an architectural ode to the value of human harmony as espoused by the UAE and India. The designs of the complex are now being finalised and will be going through approval processes," said BAPS in its press release.
Pink stone from Rajasthan and marble from Macedonia will be brought to the sculpting sites in India in the coming months and craftsmen will begin the work for the landmark structure with seven spires, which will represent the UAE's seven emirates. Once the sculpting is complete, the stones will be transported to Abu Dhabi and assembled on the site here in Abu Dhabi.
anjana@khaleejtimes.com
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