Babri verdict: Chances brighten for negotiated settlement

The dignified and mature public response to the Allahabad High Court judgment on the Ayodhya land title case has triggered a chorus for a negotiated settlement of the dispute.

That the Muslim community, despite feeling aggrieved, has not reacted favourably to Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh’s attempts to whip up a sense of grievance, and the Sangh Parivar’s refusal to court any fresh controversy, has encouraged the Centre and the ruling UPA to explore possibilities of an amicable settlement.   

The stand of both the Centre and the Congress that the high court judgment has not justified the “criminal act” of Babri Mosque demolition, and the BJP’s concurrence that the verdict was independent of the December 6, 1992 demolition case, is being seen in legal and political circles as a positive indicator that has kept the door open for a negotiated settlement.

Although both the Nirmohi Akhara and Sunni Wakf Board, the two parties in the litigation, have threatened to appeal in Supreme Court, the underlying feeling that it could again be a long haul given the tardy pace of the judicial process, has led to certain quarters in these two outfits being open to the possibility of talks.

On the face of it, the Centre officially sees no role for itself in bringing the litigant parties to the negotiation table, but sources in the government have not ruled out the possibility of facilitating a negotiated settlement of the dispute once for all.

There is a strong feeling in government circles, as is being felt by the political parties also, that the court verdict, by recognising the collective right of the litigating parties, particularly the Sunni Wakf Board and the Nirmohi Akhara, has paved the way for a dialogue between the various parties.

Besides, the fact that Muslim religious leaders in UP rejected Yadav’s statement that the community had not got justic, is indicative of a change in atmosphere.