Vishwesha Tirtha Swami of Pejawar Mutt said on Thursday that there should be no violence in the State, especially in coastal Karnataka, after the Supreme Court delivers its judgment on the Ram Mandir issue in Ayodhya.
Addressing presspersons here, the seer said he expects the judgment, to be delivered in about a week, to go in favour of the Hindus because of the good arguments put forth by the side’s advocates. “The Muslim side has not been very insistent on the issue and does not want it to be a prestige issue. They do not want any contention between Hindus and Muslims, and want the issue to be resolved,” he said. “If the verdict goes in favour of the Hindus, there should be no victory processions. People should not get carried away by their emotions. Instead, they should sing bhajans or offer prayers in temples and mutts,” he said.
The seer also said that there should not be victory processions if the verdict in favour of the Muslims either. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has decided to behave constitutionally on this matter, he said.
“There should be no violence against either Hindus or Muslims. If there is, I will sit on a fast. Whatever be the judgment, I do not want peace to be disturbed. We should respect the Supreme Court and the Constitution. This will be a good opportunity for Hindu-Muslim amity,” the seer said.
Asked about the course of action if the verdict goes against the temple in Ayodhya, the seer said, “We will think about it. But we feel it will be in our favour.” To another query, he said his appeal for peace applies even if the Supreme Court orders a status quo.
The seer said that Sri Sri Ravi Shankar of Art of Living had informed him that during the mediation talks between Hindus and Muslims on the Ram Temple issue a while back, there was a chance of the Muslim side not opposing the construction of the temple. But the mediation talks have not been made public and these talks also faced some opposition, the Pejawar seer said.
