The Hindu : VHP willing to give three months' time to Govt.

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Mar 05, 2002

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VHP willing to give three months' time to Govt.
By Neena Vyas

NEW DELHI, MARCH 4. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) was today desperately trying to get the Government to give it a face-saving formula by allowing it to carry out a ``symbolic puja'' of carved stones at the `shilanyas' site in Ayodhya on March 15.

For this it enlisted the help of the Shankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam, Jayendra Saraswati, who met the Prime Minister, A.B. Vajpayee, late today. The VHP leaders, Ashok Singhal and Giriraj Kishore, met the Shankaracharya this morning along with some `sants'. And they will meet him again to get feedback on his meeting with the Prime Minister before taking a ``final decision'' on their current programme.

Mr. Singhal announced that the VHP would be agreeable to giving the Government three months more (till June 3 when its ongoing 100 days `yagna' will end) to hand over 42 acres of the acquired land to the Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas controlled by it. A `mahurat' would be worked out and then the construction of the Ram temple would begin.

Mr. Singhal claimed that the VHP had never announced the start of construction on March 15 (although this had been announced loudly and clearly not once but repeatedly). Only a ``symbolic puja'' of carved stones was planned for that day. Other VHP leaders indicated that the `mahurat' date could be ``after October''.

However, the Government seems firm on not allowing anything, symbolic or otherwise, within the boundaries of the 67 acres of the acquired land. After Godhra, and the communal carnage in Gujarat, it cannot risk a bloodbath in the country.

The Government suggestion is that the VHP should perform its `puja' within the precincts of the workshop where the carved stones are kept.

A lot of confusion was caused at a press conference

today due to contradictory statements by VHP leaders and the `sants' invited by them for a day-long meeting. Ramchandra Paramhans, president of the Nyas, said that there would be no going back on the announced programme, and his comments on Mr. Vajpayee bordered on the abusive. But Mahant Avaidyanath of Gorakhpur, a former BJP MP, said the `sants' would be agreeable to giving the Government three months more if it gave them an assurance that it would hand over part of the acquired land by then.

Mr. Singhal's tone was more conciliatory. While indicating that the programme would continue, he added that there will be no attempt to occupy any land forcibly. The indication was that if the Government were to arrest those coming for the `yagna' or if it were to physically stop the VHP from moving the carved stones, it would not resist.

He insisted that even now - without handing over any land to the VHP - the Government could agree to allow a ``symbolic puja'' of the carved stones at the `shilanyas' site (which is close to the site where the Babri Masjid was demolished in 1992) since the Government was the owner of the acquired land.

The VHP demanded that the Government lift the restrictions placed on `Ram bhakts' coming to Ayodhya for the `yagna', give permission for a `puja' at the `shilanyas' site on March 15 and hand over 42 acres of land to the Nyas by June 2. The `Ram bhakts' have been advised to court arrest in their districts if they are not able to leave for Ayodhya.

The Government's effort is to arrive at an agreed formula for a `puja' outside the 67 acres to avoid any possibility of a clash. The fear is that if thousands of saffron- clad `sadhus' were to come out on the streets, there could be a problem.

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