Attacking Bharatiya Janata Party veteran L.K. Advani for his remark that he “feels vindicated” on his ‘rath yatra' in the wake of the Ayodhya title suits verdict, Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal on Tuesday said the statement exposed his “short-sightedness” as the matter is yet to be heard by the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court could either affirm or set aside the verdict.
“However, what is happening today is that some political parties are taking this to be the final verdict and therefore making public statements, things they should not be saying. We do not know finally what is going to happen,” Mr. Sibal said.
“If Advani believes the verdict will be affirmed in its entirety by the Supreme Court, then obviously being a mature politician I can't possibly say that years of experience has put him in good stead.”
“It is not only jumping the gun, I think it shows a sense of short-sightedness of a leader,” Mr. Sibal said in an interview to Karan Thapar for CNBC's ‘India Tonight' programme.
Mr. Sibal said he did not subscribe to Mr. Advani's assertion that the verdict had cleared the way for construction of a Ram temple at Ayodhya. It was too “premature” to make such a statement. “L.K. Advani knows it and perhaps they are probably doing it because they believe that in the coming elections they might find some advantages,” Mr. Sibal said, adding that the BJP leader was trying to justify to himself that what he did in the ‘rath yatra' was right.
As for the reconciliation process, he said the government should not step in as it was a “private dispute” which should be left to the parties concerned to resolve.
“The issues are highly complex and the Supreme Court will be very careful and meticulous in analysing the judgment and coming to a conclusion consistent with the Constitution.” It could take a long time to deliver its verdict, he felt.
