New Delhi: As thousands of onlookers cheered, the effigies of demon king Ravana were set ablaze amid a burst of fire crackers at many places across the Capital on Monday evening to celebrate Dussehra, symbolising the victory of good over evil.
Thousands of people gathered at the Ram Lila Ground near the Red Fort in New Delhi to watch the city's oldest Ramlila event. It has been organised for over 150 years, with India's erstwhile British rulers granting it permission in 1921.
Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress party president Sonia Gandhi, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and other senior Congress leaders earlier witnessed the staged ritual fight between Lord Ram and Ravana at the ground.
Also present at the ground was Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal. The Congress president, wearing a maroon sari, waved to the thousands of people gathered to watch the event.
Giant sized effigies of Ravana, his son Meghnad and brother Kumbhakaran were burnt in many neighbourhoods across Delhi as well. Standing atop trucks, devotees and enthusiasts dressed as Ram, Ravana and the monkey god Hanuman recreated the mythological scenes of the epic Ramayana.
Scenes of Ram's journey as a prince, his 14-year exile in the forest, his wife Sita's abduction by Ravana, the king of Lanka, were also portrayed.
Dikshit, in her greeting to the people, hoped the festival would bring joy and goodness in the lives of people and strengthen the spirit of togetherness and brotherhood in the society.
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