A top cleric from Lucknow's Nadwa Islamic seminary has suggested that land for a mosque and a university away from the disputed Babri Masjid site in Ayodhya could be an option for Muslims
A top cleric from Lucknow's Nadwa Islamic seminary has suggested that land for a mosque and a university away from the disputed Babri Masjid site in Ayodhya could be an option for Muslims, sparking a row amid the ongoing plenary of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB).
Maulana Sayyed Salman Hussaini Nadvi on Thursday met Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in Bengaluru to discuss a solution to the Ayodhya dispute. He was part of a delegation of six Muslims who met Sri Sri ahead of 26th plenary of the AIMPLB, the Times of India reported.
Nadvi, who teaches at Lucknow's Nadwatul Ulema or Nadwa Madrassa, is also an executive member of the AIMPLB.
In a video clip that has gone viral, Nadvi said the Hanbali school of Islamic jurisprudence allows 'shifting of mosques' and that Muslims will agree to the plan.
Nadvi said top leaders from both the communities should meet to hammer out an out-of court settlement to the lingering dispute, the TOI reported. The government should allot land to Muslims away from the disputed site for a mosque and a sprawling university and Hindu leaders should not stake claim to any other Muslim place of worship, he said.
His statement came as the Supreme Court began hearing the Babri case and said it would hear the case as "a pure land dispute".
Earlier on February 8, the three-judge Supreme Court bench fixed March 14 as the next date of hearing in Ayodhya case as some of the documents and translations were yet to be filed before the apex court.
The AIMPLB has, however, rejected the possibility of any kind of settlement on the issue, stating that such a move would violate the basic tenets of Islam.
Without mentioning, Nadvi's name, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi said that the land dedicated for Babri Masjid cannot be sold, gifted, or alienated.
"The board reiterates its resolution of December 1990 and January 1993 and once again emphasises the basic level of Shariah that the land dedicated for Masjid cannot be sold, gifted, or in any way alienated. If once dedicated, it vests in Allah," he said after the first day of AIMPLB working committee meeting.
AIMPLB secretary and spokesperson Zafaryab Jilani said: "There is no change in our stand. Only SC verdict in the case will be acceptable to the board. We had made our position clear in April also soon after the SC suggested that attempts should be made at for a negotiated settlement. Our position remains the same."
The three-day 26th plenary session of the AIMPLB began in Hyderabad on Friday.
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