Samajwadi Party (SP) national president Akhilesh Yadav is scheduled to visit Ayodhya on Saturday, December 12, 2026, to offer prayers to Ram Lalla at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple alongside his family. The announcement was made by senior SP leader and former Ayodhya MLA Tej Narayan Pandey, popularly known as Pawan Pandey, who stated that the date and auspicious time (muhurat) for the visit have been finalized. Marking his first darshan at the grand temple since its consecration in January 2024, the upcoming pilgrimage has swiftly become a major talking point across Uttar Pradesh’s political and religious landscape. According to Pawan Pandey, Yadav had entrusted him with coordinating the exact schedule following consultations with priests and examining planetary alignments, settling on December 12 for a full-day spiritual itinerary in the temple town.

What Is Akhilesh Yadav’s Full Itinerary in Ayodhya on December 12?

According to details shared by Pawan Pandey, the Samajwadi Party chief will travel to Ayodhya accompanied by his wife, Mainpuri MP Dimple Yadav, and their children. Rather than making a brief stopover, Yadav plans to spend the entire day in the holy city. His itinerary includes offering prayers at the Ram Mandir for Ram Lalla darshan, visiting the revered Hanuman Garhi temple to seek blessings, and meeting local seers, saints, and heads of prominent religious mutts across Ayodhya. While party leaders have emphasized that the December 12 trip is strictly a personal and religious pilgrimage, no formal public rallies or political meetings have been scheduled for that day so far.

Why Did Akhilesh Yadav Delay His Ram Mandir Visit Until December 2026?

Since the Pran Pratishtha (consecration) ceremony of the Ram Temple in January 2024, Akhilesh Yadav had repeatedly deflected questions regarding when he would visit the shrine. Over the past two years, the SP chief maintained that he would visit Ram Lalla only after completing the construction and consecration of the Kedareshwar Mahadev Temple in his home district of Etawah—a spiritual project initiated during his tenure. Although Yadav traveled to Ayodhya in October 2026 to attend a private Bhagwat Katha after a 15-year gap, he had refrained from visiting the Ram Janmabhoomi complex during that trip. With the Kedareshwar Temple consecration in Etawah now accomplished and priests consulted for an auspicious muhurat, Yadav has finally locked in December 12 for his darshan.

How Have BJP Leaders Reacted to the December 12 Announcement?

The announcement of Yadav’s December 12 visit has triggered sharp political sparring between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Samajwadi Party ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. Senior BJP leaders, including Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and UP BJP state president Pankaj Chaudhary, have questioned the timing and intent behind the trip. Chief Minister Adityanath remarked that those associated with past actions against kar sevaks in the 1990s should seek an apology before visiting the shrine, while Union Minister Pankaj Chaudhary challenged the SP chief on social media to visit on December 6 instead of December 12 if the move represents genuine devotion rather than political calculation. BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi also criticized the Samajwadi Party’s historical stance on the Ayodhya movement following Pawan Pandey’s press statement.

Political Significance of Ayodhya Ahead of the 2027 UP Assembly Elections

Ayodhya holds immense symbolic and electoral weight in Uttar Pradesh politics, especially after the Samajwadi Party’s Awadhesh Prasad won the Faizabad (Ayodhya) Lok Sabha seat in the 2024 general elections—a result that reshaped political narratives across Purvanchal and Awadh. Political observers note that Yadav’s decision to visit Ram Lalla and Hanuman Garhi with his family is widely viewed as an effort to neutralize the BJP’s persistent ideological attacks while broadening the SP’s social coalition ahead of the 2027 state polls. At the same time, the BJP is rolling out its statewide Panchayat Maha Abhiyan across all 403 assembly constituencies to consolidate rural support. As December 12 approaches, all eyes in Uttar Pradesh will remain fixed on Ayodhya to see how Akhilesh Yadav’s high-profile darshan influences the state’s evolving political discourse.