India, Nov. 7 -- Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav will visit the Ram Temple in Ayodhya with his family on December 12 (Thursday), in what would be his first visit to the temple since its consecration in January, 2024.

The visit comes months before the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly election, scheduled to be held in February or March next year.

Yadav, whose party is a part of the opposition INDIA bloc, had skipped the temple's consecration ceremony. Congress MP Rahul Gandhi had also done the same, with both leaders drawing criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. An invitation had been extended to both leaders to attend.

The invitation for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony in 2024 had led to a war of...