The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) took a dig at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday and asked as to why an act cannot be passed for construction of a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya while a huge statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel can be built in Gujarat. Though a separate bench has been formed by the Supreme Court, which is hearing the Ayodhya title suits, no decision has been taken yet on the pending issue, senior Sangh leader Dattatreya Hosabale said while addressing a public rally in Mumbai.

"If Sardar Patel's statue can be erected on the banks of the Narmada river (in Gujarat), why an act cannot be passed to build a giant Ram temple?" questioned Hosabale, the Sah Sarkaryavaah or Joint General Secretary of the RSS.

"Then Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao while speaking before the Supreme Court had stated that if the archaeological survey finds remains of a temple (at the site), the land would be made available for the temple. The excavation has found remains of the temple, but the court now says that this decision is not on its priority list," Hosabale said

He was addressing a rally organised jointly by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and some regional religious outfits with an objective to mount pressure on the Centre for expediting construction of the Ram temple.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat had demanded a law to pave the way for construction of the temple in Ayodhya, at his annual Vijaya Dashmi rally in Nagpur this October.

"The SC has already formed a separate bench for the hearings on Ayodhya, still there has been no decision," Hosabale said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated an imposing 182-metre statue of the country's first home minister, touted as the world's tallest, on October 31 at Sadhu Bet near Sardar Sarovar Dam in Narmada district.

The apex court, on October 29, had fixed the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute cases for the first week of January next year before an appropriate bench, which will decide the schedule of hearing.

Many Hindu organisations have been demanding construction of the Ram temple, as promised by the BJP before coming to power in 2014.