Four pleas filed in Supreme Court seeking review of Nov 9 Ayodhya verdict
New Delhi: Four petitions were filed in the Supreme Court Friday seeking review of its November 9 verdict which cleared the way for construction of a Ram Temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya.
A 5-judge bench, headed by the then Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, had in a unanimous verdict on November 9 decreed the entire 2.77 acre disputed land in favour of deity 'Ram Lalla' and also directed the Centre to allot a 5-acre plot to Sunni Waqf Board for building a mosque in Ayodhya.
Four separate fresh review petitions have been filed by Maulana Mufti Hasbullah, Mohd Umar, Maulana Mahfoozur Rehman and Mishbahuddin, who are supported by the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB).
In a press release, the four review petitioners through their counsel M R Shamshad, said that AIMPLB had decided on November 17 that it would support filing of review pleas in the matter.
On December 2, the first review petition in the case was filed by Maulana Syed Ashhad Rashidi, legal heir of original litigant M Siddiq and Uttar Pradesh President of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind saying that "complete justice" could only be done by directing reconstruction of Babri Masjid.
While key litigant, Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Wakf Board, decided against challenging the verdict, Maulana Syed Ashhad Rashidi has sought review of the verdict on 14 counts.
In his review plea, Maulana Mufti Hasbullah has said that the top court should reconsider the "grave injustice" to a community in a title suit.
"Title could not have been given to Hindu parties on the basis of exclusive possession of entire site which never existed at any point in time with the Hindus since it is admitted that Muslims entered and prayed at the site till December 1949, and later prevented from doing so because of the attachment while unfairly permitting Hindu worship following criminal trespass," Hasbullah said in his plea, which has been settled by senior advocates Rajeev Dhavan and Zafaryab Jilani.
The plea said that the November 9 verdict "condones serious illegalities of destruction, criminal trespass and violation of rule of law including damaging the Mosque and eventually destroying it".
"The judgment erred in accepting the juristic personality of the idol entitled it to the 3 domed structure and the courtyard while holding that the idol was illegally and forcibly put there. An idol as deity cannot be simultaneously illegally placed and legally valid to claim the title," Hasbullah said in his plea.
It said since it is undisputed that Muslims were praying on the site till December 16, 1949 and entered the Mosque through the outer courtyard, this fact proves that the Hindus were never in exclusive possession.
"The court erred in not considering that there was a dedication of the mosque which was self-evident from the inscriptions," it said, adding, "the judgment erred in holding that the waqf was not established by 'user' though continuous possession and prayer were shown at all times."
"It also wrongly assumed that prayers did not take place at mosque before 1857 but used 1857 onwards alone as relevant," one of the review petitions said.
It further said, "the judgment under review erred in allotting alternate land of 5 acres to the Sunni Waqf Board under Article 142 even though the same was not pleaded for."
In the first review plea, Rashidi has sought an interim stay on operation of the verdict in which it had directed the Centre that a trust be formed within three months for construction of the temple at the site.
Rashidi has also questioned the direction asking the Centre and the Uttar Pradesh government to allot 5 acre land for construction of a mosque at a prominent place in Ayodhya, saying that such a prayer was never made by the Muslim parties.
It was also submitted that despite acknowledging several illegalities committed by the Hindu parties, including the destruction of the mosque at the disputed site, the apex court condoned them and granted the land to them.
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Successfully overcame major resistance to Karnataka Muslim Convention, says Suhail Ahmed Maroor
Bengaluru: Karnataka Rajya Muslim Sanghatanegala Okkoota spokesperson Suhail Ahmed Maroor on Saturday said the organisers had successfully overcome what he described as significant resistance to the ‘Karnataka Muslim Convention’, despite a misinformation campaign in the last 24 hours claiming that the event had been cancelled.
Speaking at the convention organised by the Karnataka Rajya Muslim Sanghatanegala Okkoota at Town Hall in Bengaluru, Maroor began his introductory remarks by reading out the Preamble to the Constitution.
He said the federation had spent the past eight months consulting members of the Muslim community and gathering opinions, with the objective of working for the community’s interests and safeguarding its constitutional rights.
Maroor said the Muslim community has the capacity to gather lakhs of people for religious programmes, but when an attempt was made to mobilise even 1,000 people for a convention focused on political, educational and social issues, questions were raised about who was backing the event, who had funded it, and whether it was for or against any particular political party.
He said the organisers faced considerable pressure, resistance and challenges, and added that many others might have cancelled the programme under such circumstances.
“We are fighting for our rights. We are living in a time when our identity is under threat,” he said.
Referring to the hijab issue, Maroor said the federation had been demanding for the past three years that the government withdraw the order banning hijab. He noted that within three hours of the federation holding a press conference to announce the convention, the government withdrew the order.
He welcomed the government’s decision and expressed gratitude on behalf of the federation.
Maroor said the convention should not be viewed with suspicion simply because the Muslim community had chosen to organise a gathering to discuss its political, educational and social concerns.
He clarified that the programme was not intended as an event against the Congress party or the government, but was aimed at examining what promises the Congress had made to the Muslim community during elections, which of those promises had been fulfilled and which remained pending.
He said the report prepared by the federation analyses both the assurances made by the Congress government and the gaps in implementation.
Maroor added that, for the first time, workers who contribute significantly to the country’s economy were collectively seeking accountability for how their taxes and labour were being recognised.
“This is not being done on behalf of any individual or political party. We are undertaking a small effort on behalf of the community,” he said.
He said that after the convention, the organisers would make efforts to submit the report to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar, state ministers, the Congress high command and Rahul Gandhi.
Haris Siddiqui of the Karnataka Rajya Muslim Sanghatanegala Okkoota delivered the welcome address.
