Ayodhya dispute: Babri action panel rejects out-of-court settlement; minister says govt favours talks

Union Minister PP Chaudhary on Tuesday said the government too favours talks to resolve the Ayodhya dispute after the apex court suggested that such "sensitive" religious issues could be settled through negotiations.

Chaudhary's remarks came after the Supreme Court said fresh attempts must be made by all parties concerned to find a solution to the Ayodhya temple dispute which is a "sensitive" and "sentimental matter".

The observations came after BJP leader Subramanian Swamy mentioned the matter seeking urgent hearing of the issue. A bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar said that such religious issues can be solved through negotiations and offered to mediate to arrive at an amicable settlement.

Chaudhary, who is Minister of State for Law and Justice said, "Government is always ready and encourages mediation. We encourage negotiations and mediations, even pre-litigation mediation and post litigation mediation."

Underlining that the suggestion of Supreme Court is "worth welcoming", he said if such complex matters are solved through negotiations, it ensures peace and better understanding between the parties in the future.

"What mediation can do, cannot be done by judgement. Both the parties are happy in case of mediation but in case of judgement, one party is happy while the other is not," he said.

However, the Muslim clerics appeared not to be in tune with the Supreme Court's suggestion that the Ayodhya issue be settled through discussions and said that things would have resolved long back if the matter could have been settled out of court.

Zafaryab Jilani, the convenor of the Babri Masjid Action Committee, asserted that the decision cannot be taken outside the court.

"We cannot go for out of court settlement. What Swamy said does not matter. He is gaining publicity just like that as he has no locus standi and we do not want to give him any answer," said Jilani.

Gulzar Azmi, the Secretary of the Legal Cell of Jamiat-Ulema-e-Hind said, "Let the court decide about the land and must give verdict accordingly. But there cannot be any solutions through talks. If it would have been so, things would have resolved long back."