Supreme Court order won't resolve Ayodhya issue: Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

New Delhi: Founder of the Art of Living Foundation Sri Sri Ravi Shankar who has been making efforts for an out of court mediation in the Ram janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute, says that the dispute will not end with a court verdict, regardless of which side wins the case.

In an interview with NDTV, he said that he had met Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath on this matter and he is supportive and on board"/.

The two had met last month but, according to NDTV, at the time the chief minister had refused to acknowledge that the Ram Mandir issue was even discussed.

"Yes, he is supportive. How could he not be? He wants peace and harmony. He has supported my stance," said Sri Sri Ravi Shankar when asked if Mr Adityanath was on board his proposal for the Muslim petitioners to give up their claim to the disputed site and instead build a mosque on another five-acre patch in Ayodhya.

The case that involves 2.77 acres of disputed land is pending with the Supreme Court. The place had the Babari Masjid situated in it which was demolished by mob on 6 December 1992. Ever since then, the matter has been under prolonged litigation about the ownership of land. The Sapex court, in its most recent hearing, made it clear that the bench would consider only the dispute on the legal title to the land, and not any claims about the holiness and religious history or significance of the plot.

"According to Islam, you cannot pray in a disputed site so anyway they can't have a mosque there. This way everyone wins," said Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.

The spiritual leader, who has been seen by stakeholders as being self-appointed and without any locus standi, said that the Supreme Court order would not resolve the issue.

"If court rules against a temple, there will be bloodshed. Do you think the Hindu majority will allow it? They will garner resentment towards the Muslim community.''

When asked by NDTV if that wasn't pre-empting the order and the government's job to implement it, he said, "There are thousands of orders that are not implemented. Do you think the majority community will accept such an order?"

Similarly, he said, if the court ruled for a temple, the Muslim community would feel left out. A status quo order would also not amount to anything, he added.
"If court rules in favour of a temple, Muslims will feel defeated. They may lose faith in the judiciary and there are chances of resorting to extremism. Exchange is the only solution. Muslims will get 5 acres of land in return, elsewhere in Ayodhya" said Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.

When asked about critics like Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, he said he was open to speaking to him. "I don't think he truly gets my perspective. Any sane person would agree to a win-win solution," said Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.

Since the beginning of his dialogue process, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar says, he has spoken to over 500 people, but several Muslim groups that are petitioners in the case say he hasn't approached them, according to NDTV.

One member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, Maulana Salman Nadwi, an Islamic scholar and recently expressed himself against the AIMPLB and arguing for a similar give-and-take by Muslims giving up their claim to the disputed land, and by building a mosque in a different land nearby, so as to resolve the matter peacefully. Soon thereafter, he quit the AIMPLB who did not accept his position and the board virtually expelled him too, for speaking in public against the board's position. However, Nadwi later retracted his position and said he was not part of any attempt of reconciliation.