The Supreme Court (SC,) on the 8th of March, reviewed the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi dispute and ordered for the commencement of the mediation process.
The bench of five judges, comprising of Ranjana Gogoi, the Chief Justice of India (CJI,) Justice S.A. Bobde, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Justice Ashok Bhushan and Justice S.A. Nazeer, heard the case. The bench constituted a panel of mediators, which includes Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, a spiritual guru, retired Justice, F.M. Kalifulla, and a senior advocate, Sriram Panchu.
Ranjan Gogoi said, “Mediation will take place. We don’t see any legal obstruction to it.” He further said, “Mediation proceedings will remain confidential. There would be no reporting in any media.”
The three panel committee will now resolve the dispute through the mediation process. The SC asked the panel to come up with a conclusion after 8 weeks.
The panel was also asked to submit a progress report regarding the matter in the Supreme Court, four weeks from the 8th of March.
The Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi dispute is a long standing issue for a piece of land in Ayodhya. The Babri Masjid was broken down by a few Hindu extremists, who believed Ram was born in the exact same spot where the Masjid was built. Now, both the Hindus and the Muslims are trying to reclaim the same piece of land.
Speaking about the last hearing regarding the case, which happened on the 6th of March, the SC ordered to try the mediation process and asked the petitioners to suggest names as to who can be the mediators.
However, the petitioners did not decide any names, following which, the SC, on the 8th of March, decided upon the three mediators to resolve the decade old dispute.
The panel of the three members will begin the mediation process in a week.
Stay tuned for further updates.
