Ayodhya, March 23 (IANS) Chief priest of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya, Santosh Kumar Tiwari, on Monday lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his long tenure in public service, describing it as commendable and praiseworthy.

Reacting to Prime Minister Modi becoming the longest-serving head of an elected government in the country, Tiwari expressed gratitude for the leadership provided by the Prime Minister and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

“The tenure of the Prime Minister so far has been very commendable and highly praiseworthy. I sincerely thank him for running the double-engine government along with our Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath,” the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple chief priest told IANS.

He said that Prime Minister Modi has visited Ayodhya on several occasions to seek the blessings of Lord Ram.

“The Prime Minister has come many times to seek the blessings of Ram Lalla. We see the Prime Minister in the form of a king…. he is a representative of Lord Ram. He is not just the Prime Minister of India; he is like the king of the country — there is no one like him. He has the blessings of Ram Lalla,” Tiwari added.

The Ram temple head priest also mentioned that institutions such as the University Grants Commission (UGC) should continue improving.

“There is just one thing that comes to my mind regarding the UGC — it should be improved a little,” Tiwari said.

He also expressed confidence that the vision being discussed about a ‘Hindu Rashtra’ (Hindu nation) would eventually become a reality.

Prime Minister Modi recently achieved a historic milestone in Indian politics by becoming the longest-serving head of an elected government in the country.

He completed 8,931 days in office (both as the former Chief Minister of Gujarat and now as the Prime Minister of India), surpassing former Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling, who held the post for 8,930 days.

The record combines PM Modi’s tenure as Chief Minister of Gujarat from October 7, 2001, to May 21, 2014, and his tenure as the Prime Minister of the country since May 26, 2014, marking more than two decades of continuous leadership in public office.

–IANS

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