Ayodhya dispute: Sri Sri Ravi Shankar meets Yogi Adityanath

Lucknow: Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar on Wednesday met Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath to discuss the solution to the Ayodhya issue. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, however, refused to divulge details of his meeting with the chief minister.

He told reporters that the two had discussed issues related to “peace, welfare of farmers and cleanliness” and that the meeting, lasting around 30 minutes, was “good”.

A day earlier, the chief minister had said, “Any effort of mediation and at any level is good and worth welcoming (for the Ayodhya issue). Talks had begun earlier too and one party always excluded itself from it. Only when both parties agree to the talks can good results can come out of them. But the intention should be right.”

Later, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar left for Ayodhya where he is scheduled to meet with saints and seers.

Sunni leaders, however, said that all efforts would be meaningless unless a definite proposal was placed before the Supreme Court.

Sunni cleric Maulana Khalid Rashid Firangi Mahali said he had no inkling of Ravi Shankar’s proposal and would not comment on his initiative.

Mr Zafaryab Jilani, counsel for Sunni Central Waqf Board in the Babri Masjid dispute, said, “All those who are talking of a negotiated settlement are those who are not a even party to the case. We are firm on our stand and will wait for the court’s verdict”.

Earlier, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar met representatives of Nirmohi Akhara and All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) to help find an out-of-court settlement to the dispute. The AIMPLB said the Ayodhya dispute could only be settled through adjudication.

The UP Shia Waqf Board, meanwhile, released the ‘front page cover’ of what it claimed was a draft proposal that would amicably settle the long-pending dispute, board chairperson Waseem Rizvi told reporters. He, however, did not reveal the contents of the document.  

Titled ‘Ek Rasta, Ekta ki Ore’ (a way towards unity) written on it, the front page cover has pictures of the proposed Ram temple and the Babri mosque, juxtaposed with an image of a Hindu hugging a Muslim.

“The board’s stand is clear. The Ram temple should be built at the spot where Ram Lalla is presently placed and the mosque can be built anywhere other than in Faizabad or Ayodhya,” he said.