Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said on Monday that he would travel to Ayodhya and open talks with stakeholders in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute on November 16.
He made the announcement on the sidelines of his lecture to students of Jawaharlal Nehru University here. “I will be going to Ayodhya day after tomorrow, and so far, all talks have been positive,” he said.
The ruling BJP is non-committal on Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s initiative to forge consensus. “As a party, we favour a solution through talks or from courts. That has been our stand,” Minister for Human Resource Development Prakash Javadekar said. But he did not say whether or not the plan had the support of the Union government.
No mandate
Not every one is certain about Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s proposed intervention. Ram Vilas Vedanti, a former BJP MP and former chair of the Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas, which is committed to building a Ram temple at a disputed site, said Sri Sri Ravi Shankar did not qualify to mediate as he had never been associated with the movement. The All India Mulsim Personal Law Board, too, said the dispute could be resolved only through adjudication.
The Art of Living Foundation, headed by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, said last week that the guru had been in touch with several imams and swamis, including Acharya Ram Das of Nirmohi Akhara.
The Supreme Court decided to reopen the hearing based on 13 appeals filed in four civil suits against a 2010 judgment that ordered a three-way split of the territory among Nrimohi Akhara, a religious denomination; Ram Lalla Virajmaan (the deity); and the Sunni Waqf Board. The court will hear the case on December 5.
