The Hindu : VHP will abide by court verdict: Kanchi Acharya

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 06, 2002

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VHP will abide by court verdict: Kanchi Acharya
By Neena Vyas

The Shankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam, Jayendra Saraswathi, with Muslim leaders during their meeting on Ayodhya in New Delhi on Tuesday.

NEW DELHI, MARCH 5. The 50-year-old Ayodhya drama seems to be inching forward towards resolution after the Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) were persuaded by the Shankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam, Jayendra Saraswathi, to give a commitment that they would abide by a final judicial verdict in the case.

At the same time, the Government seems to be seriously preparing a case for handing over to the VHP 42 acres of the acquired land in Ayodhya, provided the courts do not come in the way and the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board clears the proposal.

However, there are still many roadblocks - the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board, which has agreed to consider the proposals, is to meet and get back, the Government has to get the approval of its National Democratic Alliance partners and it may also seek a consensus with the Opposition. And, finally, the Government may opt for parliamentary approval before implementing the details of the peace formula hammered out with the help of the Shankaracharya.

The `breakthrough' came after a series of meetings the Acharya held over the last two days. He met the Nyas and VHP leaders on Monday and this morning again, he had a 90-minute meeting with the Prime Minister last night, and this afternoon he conferred with a delegation of the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board where the former President, R. Venkataraman, the former Chief Justice, Ranganath Mishra, and the former Uttar Pradesh Governor, Romesh Bhandari, were present. The Home Minister, L.K. Advani, the BJP president, Jana Krishnamurthi, the Defence Minister, George Fernandes, had meetings with him today and the Human Resource Development Minister, Murli Manohar Joshi, met him last night.

But even before the details of the peace formula were known, a strong objection came from the Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid. Objections from the `sants', who are yet to agree to a commitment to abide by the final court verdict, can also not be ruled out.

The main ingredients of the peace formula, as spelt out by the Kanchi Acharya at a press conference today, were as follows: The VHP and the Nyas must stop using the provocative mandir wahin banayenge (we will build the temple on the disputed site) kind of language. ``The Nyas has given a written assurance that it will abide by the court verdict,'' he added. Government sources separately confirmed this.

``The disputed site at Ayodhya is to be separated by a wall from the rest of acquired land (about 67 acres) by a wall and the status quo must be maintained on this till the final verdict of the court.''

``There will be no change in the temple building plan'' (whose sanctum sanctorum would be shown to be on the disputed site), ``but no construction will be allowed.'' The Government could then consider giving the Nyas 42 acres of the acquired land (not including the disputed site), but only after approval of the NDA, consensus of the Opposition and, perhaps, parliamentary approval.

The VHP is to be allowed to continue with its ongoing 100-day `yagna' without hurdles. (Government sources indicated that a verbal assurance from the VHP had been received that the programme would not mean thousands of `Ram sevaks' coming to Ayodhya. If they did, the Government would prevent them, even arrest them.)

A symbolic `puja' of the carved stones is to be allowed at the `shilanyas' site (outside the disputed area where the demolished Babri Masjid stood) on March 15. (Sources at the Prime Minister's Office indicated that the Government was hopeful of even the Congress agreeing to it; after all, they allowed the `shilanyas'.) And, finally, the Government would get the Law Ministry's opinion on handing over some of the acquired land to the Nyas by mid-May, before the June 2 deadline given by the VHP, and then take a decision.

If the legal opinion is that the status quo is to be maintained on the entire 67 acres, or if the court were to give an interim order on this, the VHP and the Nyas would respect and accept it. Privately, Government sources indicated that there was no intention to allow any full-scale continuation of the VHP's ongoing programme. The VHP had agreed to tone it down. It was agreed that though formally no `ban' would be imposed on `Ram sevaks' coming to Ayodhya they would, in fact, be prevented from doing so if they tried. Of course, the VHP is continuing to maintain that there will be no watering down of its programme.

`No compromise on our conditions'

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, MARCH 5. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad today asserted that it was firm on moving the carved pillars from workshops to the site of temple construction in Ayodhya. It, however, said the Allahabad High Court should expedite verdict on the dispute.

The VHP senior vice president, Giriraj Kishore, said the organisation would not abandon its three-point demand unveiled on Monday. The demands are, removal of restrictions on the movement of ``kar sevaks'' from reaching Ayodhya, permission for ``puja'' at the ``shilanyas'' site on March 15, and handing over 42 acres of acquired land to the Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas by June 3 when the 100-day ongoing ``yagna'' ends. The VHP, he said, would wait till March 12, the earlier deadline.

Acharya Kishore seemed to suggest that the VHP was intractable on the three demands, but willing to consider any other proposal that may emerge from the latest initiative of the Kanchi Shankaracharya, Jayendra Saraswathi, to resolve the issue. He said the VHP had apprised the Kanchi acharya of the three demands. While sticking to the March 15 programme, he said the VHP would not go into the disputed area.

Acharya Kishore said the Allahabad High Court should expedite the case concerning the disputed site on the basis of ``documents'' and not just rely on witnesses. In the past four decades only 14 of the 100 witnesses were examined. He wondered how could there be witnesses to something that took place hundreds of years ago.

When asked whether the VHP would abide by the court verdict, he said the organisation was yet to take a decision and it was for the religious leaders to discuss if such a proposal came.

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