The Hindu : SC fixes March 6 for hearing on Ayodhya

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Feb 22, 2003

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SC fixes March 6 for hearing on Ayodhya

By J. Venkatesan

NEW DELHI FEB. 21. Brushing aside opposition from various parties, the Supreme Court today agreed with the Centre on the need to resolve the Ayodhya dispute expeditiously and posted for March 6 the Centre's plea for early hearing and vacation of the stay on religious activity of any kind in the 67.703 acres of undisputed land.

A Bench, comprising the Chief Justice V.N. Khare and Justice A.R. Lakshmanan, posted the matter for hearing by a five-Judge Constitution Bench after the Solicitor-General, Kirit N. Raval, and counsel for the petitioner and others made their submissions.

The five-Judge Bench will also take up for hearing the main petition filed by Mohd. Aslam Bhure to place the 67.703 acres of "undisputed" land in Ayodhya under the control of the Army and seeking "status quo" till the dispute on the title suit was decided by the Allahabad High court.

The Chief Justice rejected the argument that the court was being pressured into resolving the dispute. He said: "We are never pressured. Be sure about it."

The Bench, while fixing the date, made it clear that if for some reason the main petition was adjourned on March 6 then the five-Judge Bench would consider the Centre's application for vacation of the interim order passed on March 13/14 last year.

The Solicitor-General submitted that the matter brooked no delay as the uncertainty prevailing on the acquired land was not in the public interest.

Opposing the Centre's application, senior counsel Kapil Sibal appearing for the Muslim Personal Law Board, said the Government was not stating the actual reason behind the hurry that it was working under pressure from the VHP.

He said the VHP had threatened to enter the site forcibly if the Government did not resolve the contentious issue and "that is why they have rushed to the court". But Mr. Raval intervened to say that the Government had nothing to do with any of the organisations and it only wanted that the matter be heard in an atmosphere of cordiality. He regretted that attempts were being made to frustrate that process.

Appearing for the All-India Babri Masjid Action Committee, senior counsel Rajiv Dhavan said the VHP was imposing its views on the Government and the Government in turn was dragging the court into it. He said that by various kinds of statements issued in public, the court was being pressured into deciding the issue early. However, the Bench responded by saying that "we are never pressured, be sure about it''.

Senior counsel for the VHP P.S. Misra said the Parishad had been the most maligned organisation. "We have to give answer to the millions who are devotees of Lord Ram." he added and pleaded for an early resolution of the dispute.

Senior counsel Siddarth Shanker Ray, appearing for the All-India Wakf Board, said, "we are making the statement at the Bar that we will abide by the court verdict. Let the VHP also give a similar statement. They have come to the court without any promise that they will abide by the court verdict."

Mr. Ray, who had also appeared for the original petitioner in the title suit, Hashim Ansari, said: "Let the title suits be decided first by the Allahabad High Court and the petition filed by Mohd. Aslam Bhure could be taken up thereafter".

He also brought to the notice of the Bench that the Allahabad High Court had already completed recording of evidence of 23 witnesses from Muslims and 14 from the other side and evidence of some more witnesses would be completed soon and the entire matter was likely to be completed by the end of this year or early next year. On behalf of the U.P. Government it was submitted that it supported the Centre's stand for early hearing of the petition and the application.

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