Modi lauds Sunni Waqf Board as litigants disown Sibal's Ayodhya statement

Netrang (Gujarat): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday congratulated the Sunni Waqf Board for disassociating themselves from the statement of senior lawyer and Congress leader Kapil Sibal in connection with the long-standing Ayodhya matter.

“The Sunni Waqf Board must be congratulated for their brave stand on the matter and disassociating themselves from the statement of Kapil Sibal ji,” the Prime Minister said while addressing a public gathering in Gujarat.

The board on Wednesday disassociated itself from the statement made by Sibal, who had been representing it in the Supreme Court.

Read: PM Modi questions Congress for linking Ayodhya dispute with 2019 polls

"Yes, Kapil Sibal is our lawyer, but he is also related to a political party. His statement in the court yesterday was wrong. We want a solution to the issue at the earliest. We have got nothing to do with his statement," Haji Mehboob associated with the Sunni Waqf Board said.

Reacting to PM's remarks, Sibal said "PM did not check the fact that actually I never represented the Sunni Waqf Board in the Supreme Court. And yet he thanked Sunni Waqf Board for a statement on the basis that I represented them. Request PM to be a little more careful".

"Please address the concerns of India. Don't divide the people of our country like this. You may win perhaps in your mind, but you will lose badly and India will lose if you only care about yourself not India," he added.

Sibal had on Tuesday, demanded for the next hearing in the case to be held only in July 2019 after the completion of the next Lok Sabha polls, citing political ramifications.

The Supreme Court deferred hearing in the case for February 8, 2018.

Following this, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Chief Amit Shah, in a press briefing, took potshots at the Congress Party and Vice President Rahul Gandhi, for adopting 'double standard' in the matter.

The Babri Masjid was built by Mughal emperor Babur in Ayodhya in 1528.

The Hindus, however, claim that a Ram temple that originally stood there was demolished to construct the mosque.

Citing this, Hindu zealots demolished the mosque on December 6, 1992, triggering communal riots in various parts of the country.