Ahead of Ayodhya's Deepotsav celebrations, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav questioned the expenditure on lamps, saying, "Why do we have to spend money on lamps and candles and put so much thought into it?" BJP's Shehzad Poonawalla criticised him for opposing the city’s decorations, saying, "SP kept Ayodhya in darkness for years...is now opposing the city’s decoration for Deepotsav."