Congress core group discusses Ayodhya verdict

Congress top brass, including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and party president Sonia Gandhi today held deliberations in the wake of the judgment of the Allahabad high court on the Ayodhya title suits.

The meeting of the party core group took place soon after the Cabinet Commuter of Security met to deliberate on the court verdict and its political fallout in Uttar Pradesh and other states.

A section of the Congress is apprehensive that the verdict of the high court would help BJP revive the Ram temple issue and take political advantage in the long run.

"In the long term, BJP would use the issue of building Ram temple. They would say the stand they had been taking in the last over 20 years has been vindicated by the court," a senior party leader, on condition of anonymity, said.

Moreover, the leader said that Congress would find it difficult to put the BJP on the mat on this issue after the legal sanction of the stand which the BJP has been taking over the last two decades.

Another party leader said that judgment dividing the disputed land in Ayodhya into three parts among Hindus and Muslims was "more political than legal" and was driven by sentiments.

Earlier at the official party briefing, Congress welcomed the Ayodhya judgement saying everyone should accept it and no one should treat it as a victory or defeat.

"Congress has held the controversy should either be solved through talks or the verdict of the court should be accepted. The court has given the verdict. We should all welcome the judgement," party general secretary Janardan Dwivedi told reporters.