New Delhi: The Supreme Court in its historic judgment on Saturday called the judgment of the Allahabad High Court in Ayodhya land title dispute case, which had trifurcated 2.77 acres of the contested area between three parties in 2010, ‘legally unsustainable’.
Passing a unanimous verdict on the case, a five-judge constitution bench of the apex court presided by CJI Ranjan Gogoi ruled, “The three-way bifurcation by High Court was legally unsustainable. The solution which commended itself to the High Court is not feasible. Dividing the land will not subserve the interest of either of the parties or secure a lasting sense of peace and tranquillity.”
The bench said that justice would not prevail if it were to overlook the entitlement of the Muslims. It also observed that the damage to the Babri mosque in 1934, its desecration in 1949 leading to the ouster of the Muslims and the eventual destruction on 6th December 1992 constituted a serious violation of the rule of law.
“They have been deprived of the structure of the mosque through means which should not have been employed in a secular nation committed to the rule of law,” the judgment stated.
The contentions of Nirmohi Akhara, which was one of the litigants in the case, of being a shebait (devotee) were also rejected by the court. It, however, asked the Central government to give it an appropriate role of management in the trust formed by the government to oversee the temple construction.
The legal battle between the two parties dates back to the British era. The first appeal was, however, filed in 1950.
