Babri Masjid dispute cannot have out-of-court settlement with Modi, Yogi in power, says BMAC

Lucknow: The Babri Masjid Action Committee (BMAC) said an out-of-court settlement of the Ayodhya dispute was not possible with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath at the helm of affairs. [caption id=“attachment_3353378” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  The Babri Masjid was demolished in 1992. AFP[/caption] “With Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Aditya Nath Yogi at the helm of affairs, there is no hope that justice will prevail with the Muslims. Both of them have been BJP workers and supporters of Ram temple movement,” BMAC convenor Zafaryab Jilani said after a meeting of its office bearers. Earlier the prime ministers used to be “neutral” on the contentious issue, he said. Jilani said the solution to the Babri Masjid title suit can be arrived only through the Supreme Court. The BMAC meeting was held against the backdrop of the apex court recently asking parties involved to sit together and arrive at a consensus on the issue, which has been dragging on for decades. “Efforts were made in the past for out-of-court settlement, but proved to be futile,” Jilani told the meeting. The BMAC office bearers were also of the view that if the Chief Justice of India or any other judge took an initiative to find a solution to the issue, Muslims would certainly support the move. “We are ready if he (CJI) nominates a team for hearing the matter. But out-of-court settlement is not possible. If the SC passes an order in this regard, we will look at it,” Jilani had said on 21 March, the day the apex court had observed that the matter was “sensitive and sentimental and it is best to settle it amicably.” Jilani had earlier said that going by his experience of last three decades, he feels that the matter cannot be settled outside the court and referred to unsuccessful negotiation attempts made during the tenures of former Prime Ministers Chandrashekhar and PV Narasimha Rao. “Let them hear us, we are prepared. But we are not ready for out of court settlement,” he said. “In 1986, talks started between the then Shankaracharya of Kanchi Kamkoti and President Muslim Personal Law Board Ali Miyan Nadvi but it failed. Later in 1990, Prime Minister Chandrashekhar, UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and Bhairon Singh Shekhawat talked but no results came. Narasimha Rao also constituted a committee and attempts of talks were made through Congress leader Subodh Kant Sahai, but the mosque was demolished in 1992,” he said. He said after the demolition, the then Muslim Personal Law Board President Rabe Hasan Nadvi had sought a written proposal from Shankaracharya of Kanchi, in which he said Muslims should leave claim on three mosques, which was not acceptable. The ruling BJP at the Centre has, however, welcomed the apex court’s suggestion, insisting that the parties to the case should keep in mind its “sensitivity”, while the Congress has been guarded in its response, saying there should be a “consensus-based” solution or the SC adjudicate the matter on merit. Adityanath has said that aggrieved parties must sit together to resolve the matter. Terming the Supreme Court’s observation as a “solid” one, he had said, “It is a welcome step.”