Ayodhya verdict: Ram Lalla comes home, a new Masjid to rise

New Delhi: In an unprecedented case based on faith and belief, the Supreme Court on Saturday “unanimously” paved the way for the construction of Lord Ram’s temple at Ayodhya as it rejected the Muslim claim over the disputed site and handed over the entire 1,500 square yard of the “composite” disputed area comprising the inner and the outer court yard of the now demolished Babri Masjid to a trust that would construct the temple and would be set up by the Central government in next three months.

The disputed land would remain in the custody of the statutory receiver till the Trust is formed and the land handed over to it. The court said that the Central government would be at “liberty to make suitable provisions in respect of the rest of the acquired land by handing it over to the trust” for its management and development.

The verdict was delivered by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi who along with Chief Justice designate Justice S.A. Bobde, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Justice Ashok Bhushan and Justice S. Abdul Nazeer had heard the matter for 40 days starting on August 6 and concluding on October 16 when judgment was reserved.

The hearing was rooted in a batch of petitions challenging September 30, 2010, Allahabad High Court judgment in which the disputed site was divided into three parts with Hindu litigants — the Idol of Ram Lalla and Nirmohi Akhara getting one part each and Muslims’ Sunni Waqf Board the third.

The top court described the High Court judgment as “legally unsustainable”.

Handing over the entire disputed site for the construction of Lord Ram’s temple, the top court ordered giving Muslims a “suitable” five-acre plot either by the Central government out of the acquired 67 acres of land or by the Uttar Pradesh government at a “suitable prominent place in Ayodhya.”

The court said that both the creation of trust and handing over the entire disputed site to it and giving Sunni Waqf Board five acres of land would be done simultaneously.

Justifying the allotment of land to Muslims, the court said, “The allotment of land to the Muslims is necessary because though on a balance of probabilities, the evidence in respect of the possessory claim of the Hindus to the composite whole of the disputed property stands on a better footing than the evidence adduced by the Muslims …”

“… the Muslims were dispossessed upon the desecration of the mosque on 22/23 December 1949 which was ultimately destroyed on 6 December 1992. There was no abandonment of the mosque by the Muslims,” said the court.

The court said that the Sunni Central Waqf Board would be at liberty on the allotment of the land to take all necessary steps for the construction of a mosque on the land allotted together with other associated facilities.

The court ordered giving Sunni Waqf Board five acres of “suitable” land at Ayodhya taking recourse to its plenary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution.