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Govt. agrees to `symbolic bhoomi puja' on March 15
By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, MARCH 8. The Vajpayee Government has started surrendering to an intractable Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). It has agreed to permit a ``symbolic bhoomi puja'' on the undisputed land in Ayodhya on March 15, which, technically, would amount to changing the ``status quo''.

The Prime Minister, A.B. Vajpayee, has come under increasing pressure from within the Sangh Parivar to dilute the commitment the Government gave _ in the President's address to the joint session of Parliament _ to maintain the status quo.

While there was no official word of the modalities of surrender to the VHP, two pronouncements _ one in Chennai and the other in Faizabad _ gave the game away. In Chennai, the Kanchi Sankaracharya, Jayendra Saraswati, announced that a ``symbolic puja with one stone'' would be performed on March 15 and that by June 2, some portion of the undisputed land would be handed over to the Ramjanmabhoomi Trust for ``construction''.

Since the Sankaracharya has been interacting with the Government, the VHP and the Muslim groups, it is presumed that he has made the announcement with the Government's consent.

The second concession to the VHP was the announcement by I.D. Swami, Minister of State for Home Affairs. He declared that the restrictions on the movement of `kar sevaks' towards Ayodhya would be eased. Wanting to pre-empt the possibility of a large congregation taking place in Ayodhya on March 15, the Centre had put in place a number of restrictions, making it difficult for the `kar sevaks' to reach Faizabad. Today, Mr. Swami announced that the train services would be restored.

The VHP, as well as a section of the BJP leadership, was unhappy over these restrictions. Many BJP MPs, led by Mahant Adityanath, had met the Prime Minister to demand the easing of restrictions and facilitation of the `puja'. Even Mr. Vajpayee's seniormost Ministerial colleagues were reported to be extremely displeased that ``our own people'' were being prevented from travelling to Ayodhya.

In fact, the decision to send Mr. Swami to Ayodhya was taken at a meeting at the Prime Minister's residence on Thursday night. It was attended by the Home Minister, L.K. Advani, the Defence Minister, George Fernandes, and BJP and RSS leaders. The consensus was that the VHP willingness to obey the law of the land should be seen as a ``concession'' and, in turn, it should be allowed ``a face-saver of a symbolic puja''.

These unilateral concessions, which amount to a change in the status quo, have been reported even before the Muslim Personal Law Board could formally respond to the Kanchi Sankaracharya's proposals. The Muslim leadership now finds itself presented with a fait accompli.

Yet another VHP functionary's pronouncements today created doubts about its credibility and sincerity. Its president, Vishnu Hari Dalmia, reiterated the oft-repeated stand that the court had no role to play in matters of faith, but almost immediately accepted that the organisation was bound to honour its verdict in the pending Ayodhya case.

At a press conference, Mr. Dalmia said that the VHP was confident that the court verdict would favour the majority community. In the event of it being otherwise, `dharmacharyas' (religious leaders) would decide the future course of action.

Asked whether the VHP was willing to alter the temple plan or shift the `sanctum sanctorum' if the title suit pending before the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court went against it, he said, ``It is upto the religious leaders to consider.''

Mr. Dalmia said that the VHP was of the opinion that the ongoing case should be decided on the basis of evidence rather than on the testimony of the 100-odd witnesses the minority community had sought to produce. He claimed that the VHP was in possession of ``irrefutable'' evidence that a temple existed at the disputed site. He expressed hope that a verdict would be possible within a year once the case was heard on a day-to-day basis.

He said that the VHP had made ``several concessions'' and was hopeful that the Government would reciprocate by lifting the restrictions on `kar sevaks' and by permitting `puja' at the undisputed site.

Trains being restored

J.P. Shukla reports from Lucknow:

Mr. Swami announced that the trains diverted in the wake of the restrictions on `kar sevaks' from entering Ayodhya would be restored from Saturday.

Mr. Swami, who visited Ayodhya at the invitation of the BJP MP, Vinay Katiyar, to study the ground situation, acknowledged that the common man in Faizabad and Ayodhya had been put to a lot of trouble. He promised to look into the matter and ensure that their sufferings came to an end.

Local newspapers carried reports of severe constraints on the life of people for the past several days. The restriction on the movement of trucks has resulted in a sharp rise in prices. According to one report, the price of wheat flour had gone up to Rs. 13 a kg and that of potatoes to Rs. 9. A severe shortage of petrol and cooking gas has also been reported.

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