SC gives mediation panel time till Aug 15

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday granted additional time to a three-member special mediation panel in the Ayodhya Ram Janmabhoomi land title dispute case. The court has extended the time till August 15 to find an amicable solution to the dispute.

A five-member Constitutional bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi heard the matter on Friday morning. The mediation panel sought an extension of time to "find an amicable solution".

During the hearing, CJI Ranjan Gogoi told the panel that the bench is not going to tell it "what progress has been made...that's confidential".

The five-member Constitutional bench comprised Justices SA Bobde, SA Nazeer, Ashok Bhushan and DY Chandrachud, besides the CJI.

The Supreme Court had earlier constituted a three-member mediation committee that was tasked with exploring the possibility of an amicable settlement in the decades-old Ayodhya's Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute case.

The panel has already submitted its interim report in a sealed cover before the Supreme Court.